


Through The Dark[NCT]

by icydain



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Blood and Violence, Character Death, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Gang NCT, M/M, OT21 (NCT), OT7 NCT Dream, References to Real People, Sex, Superpowers, Technology, Tragedy, WayV - Freeform, nct 127
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-02
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:13:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 10
Words: 55,286
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27257737
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/icydain/pseuds/icydain
Summary: "We can't have this take us down. If we don't do something about this now, this will destroy everything we've built for years", Johnny says.With equally stressed aura, Kun breathes out a heavy sigh as the room fills with heavier tension than before."Then what do you suggest?" asks Taeyong as he folds his hands."I say we unite. All the divisions into one. With the aces, the visionaries and the dreamers united, we'll be unstoppable", states Johnny.
Relationships: Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul | Ten/Suh Youngho | Johnny, Dong Si Cheng | WinWin/Nakamoto Yuta, Huang Ren Jun/Wong Yuk Hei | Lucas, Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Kim Dongyoung | Doyoung, Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Mark Lee, Lee Jeno/Na Jaemin, Lee Taeyong/Moon Taeil
Comments: 30
Kudos: 166





	1. Neo City

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Learn how to see. It all may seem real for now but the reality has always been subjective. The mist is but a glimpse of reality"

In the past, all countries lived in harmony. It was a world where peace and justice prevailed. Until Exo Nation led an experiment gone wrong. 

Exo Nation was famous for their supernatural leaders. Always have been leading the economy and pioneers of world-renowned technology. Their governor, Kim Minseok led an experiment where they would create clones, trying to surpass everything they have built. Starting with the leaders, they created their very own counterparts. They were successful at making them and even made a few adjustments that made their abilities enhanced. But there was one problem. The clones wanted more. Wanted to be the one in command of Exo Nation and later on, the whole world. It started an internal war. The leaders against their clones. With the help from Red City, they were able to defeat the clones at the expense of losing some of their leaders. They put them in a secluded island far away from humanity. 

As Exo Nation and Red City recovered from the war, Lee Taemin, governor of Red City and Kim Junmyeon, right hand man of Kim Minseok had decided to build a country. A country in which that could explore and go beyond their limits. Creating dreams within and later on sharing it to the world. Making the dreams alter into reality. From the laid waste of the war, Taemin and Junmyeon became the founding fathers of a new country.

**Neo City**

A country neighboring Caratland and Ahga state. They were the source of continuous innovating technology and always have been setting the standards when it comes to their forces. Neo City seemed perfect but they have always been divided. Figuratively and physically. The founding fathers made it so that each division would be specializing in different areas making the growth twice faster than any community. With this advantage, it also came with the price of the people being divided among themselves. Always challenging each division's growth no matter, the circumstances. 

Neo City has been governed by the Lee bloodline who were descendants from Lee Taemin; one of the founding fathers. To this day, the Lee bloodline only grew stronger with Lee Taeyong as the present governor. 

If one would ask what Lee Taeyong was like, they would say he was a man of great caliber. Always making sure that the his people were treated with equity and served with proper justice. As much as he had these promising qualities, the man had also served great visuals. Some even made rumors of him being a vampire and a demigod for they cannot really accept that a man as perfect as him walked their world. But all of his accomplishments were void without his advisor. Kim Dongyoung or as people call him, Doyoung. Doyoung was raised by the Lee family themselves. Clothed, fed and supplied him the proper education themselves and out of immense gratitude, Doyoung swore a great oath before the Lee's: to serve and remain by Taeyong's side until his last breath. Some may say that he was forced to take the oath, held at gunpoint even but Doyoung never gets tired of telling them the story of how Taeyong's parents found him shaking like a leaf in the winter of '99 under a flickering lightpost and took him home with them no questions asked. 

**Division 127**

The division home to the Aces; a group of people working directly under the government who had led Neo City to countless victories when it came to the Battle of the Forces. Led by Suh Youngho populary known as Johnny, the elocutionist and his right-hand man, Jung Yoonoh also known as Jaehyun, the interrogator, Division 127 has remained peaceful since their leadership. The division was also known for their great bodies of water. Their crystal waters shine under the sun during the day and turns a light shade of blue under the moonlight. The Aces were very special people. They always have kept to themselves that moves as a group. It was rare to find an Ace wandering alone. 

Moon Taeil, the leader and eldest of the Aces, specializes in chemicals. Constantly learning and making new formulas that has cured diseases all over the world. His work also contributes to various poisons used in the Battle of the Forces. 

Nakamoto Yuta. A very talented sniper. Never missed a single shot in his life. He was trained to show no mercy at work. But when it comes to assignments, he only takes the job if the person targeted is proven guilty of crimes. He does not take out innocent individuals which makes him an idol for others. This resulted in him not participating in the Battle of the Forces. No one has ever seen his full face. He always has a mask that covers the right side of his face. He also does not talk. All transactions are through a generator he had custom made from the Vision.

Kim Jungwoo. The mechanist. Due to his soft and dog-like features, he is often perceived as the weakling. This makes it easier for him to not be suspected as one of the Aces. He goes by his alias Zeus. He is responsible for vehicle and engine upgrades for the Aces. Because of his specialty in machines, he has little to zero skill in the battlefield. He is the person behind the fastest engine developed known to man.

**Division Dream**

The division where the Dreamers; the future of Neo City resides. The division is responsible for honing individuals to be fully capable of running Neo City in the future. They are also known for their picturesque and breathtaking landscapes. From forests to rainforests, to mountains and cliffs and from valleys to hills. Led by Lee Minhyung, most known as Mark, Ace of Trade and his right-hand man Lee Donghyuck, who goes by Haechan, the trickster. The Dreamers are trained, molding their skills and talents to be the greatest.

Huang Renjun, the assassin in training. Due to his hawk eyes, he is dubbed as Nakamoto Yuta 2.0. The difference between them was Renjun does not care if you are innocent or not. He will take you out as long as the job is done. He was always teased for his temper was the same length as his height; short. Despite this, he is the most respected among the Dreamers.

Lee Jeno. He specializes in close combat. He's extremely useless with guns and arrows but with his knives, spears, swords and fists, he is a beast in the battlefield. People are always intimidated by him. With his face always pulled in a serious expression and his body build, he is seen as unapproachable but once he flashes his smile, he looked so soft. The only problem was, he seldom smiles.

Na Jaemin. He is called The Unseen. He was gifted the ability of invisibility and speed of light. A rare and dangerous combination. The gift of double ability comes every ten thousand years and Jaemin is this generation's double ability wielder. This makes him a target for power hungry people from all over the world. But with his double ability, he makes it extremely hard for assassins and bounty hunters.

Zhong Chenle. The banshee. He predicts the death of an individual by wailing and weeping. But Chenle is a rare kind. He can predict death and drain the life force of a person which makes him extremely dangerous. Banshees are mostly women but because of a curse, instead of his mother being a banshee, it was passed to him. His eyes always had a red tinge in them from the weeping and he spoke in a deep scratchy voice. When he wails, it could be heard from a thousand miles and glass breaks. His milky white skin contrasts his blood red hair. With the help of Mark, he learns to control his predictions.

Park Jisung. The whisperer. He is able to communicate with a person or an animal if he is able to form a bond with them. Not only does he speak to them in their head, but he is also starting to learn to see what they see. Him being the youngest of the Dreamers, he tends to be treated like a child which always irks him. Day by day, his ability is enhanced.

**Division U**

The division known to be neutral territory. The Neo City tower stands in the middle of Division U, where the governor and his council remain. This division is for the civilians of Neo City. A division where they can freely interact and have fun. Malls, race tracks, casinos and everything you can think of, you can find it in Division U.

**Division Vision**

The division where the Visionaries stay. Vision is the center of trade and industry of Neo City. When it comes to technology, they are always the first to develop them. Having the latest upgrades to technology makes them the hotspot for business people. Because of Vision, Neo City is second to Caratland from the list of the richest country in the world. Every machine and appliance the whole world has, is 75% produced and developed from Division Vision. Led by Qian Kun, a pilot, and his right-hand man, Huang Guanheng, most known as Hendery, the socialite. The Visionaries are some of the rarest people next to the Dreamers.

Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul. Because of his long name, he is called Ten. The Seer. He was gifted the ability to see into the future. He gains power from the moon. His ability is at its highest peak when the moon is full and the weakest when the moon is shadowed.

Dong Si Cheng. He is named Winwin by the Visionaries. He is gifted the ability of telekinesis. With this extraordinary ability, he tends to be playful with the Visionaries. Pulling pranks on them occasionally but when he is angered, he tends to lose control of his ability.

Wong Yukhei or Huang Xuxi. Most of the time, people call him Lucas. The tech hack. One of the best in the world. At age 7, he managed to get into the Neo City system. Fortunately, he wasn’t sent to prison. Instead, the council found him to be quite talented and they decided that he would join the Visionaries.

Xiao Dejun. He’s commonly referred to as DJ or Xiaojun. The weapons specialist. Guns, knives, spears, swords, canons, bows. Every weapon known to man, he has crafted it and even manages to improve it’s design and use. People used to tease him that maybe he was the Hephaestus; Blacksmith God of this world.

Liu Yangyang. The cryptologist. He works closely with Lucas most of the time. Since Lucas is tasked to get into systems from various groups, he is the one tasked to interpret them for the council when codes are used. When he wants a bit of fun, he changes the codes a bit just to mess with the council. They don’t know what it means so they can’t really punish him.

—

2:30 am. 

The clock read. All was peacefully sleeping as the sun is slowly preparing to rise. The whistling of the cold air could be heard from outside but the people couldn’t for they were asleep. But Mark could hear it. He was tossing and turning the whole night and completely gave up on sleeping once the clock struck 1am. 

He lays motionless in his bed. Under the thick covers, he could feel the cold pierce through. His surroundings was silent for a minute. 

Two.

Four.

Five.

And just as he thought that the whistling of the air will continue, a blood-curling scream resonates through the air for a good three minutes. With his hands completely pressed to ears, an attempt to block out the noise, he tries to talk to Jisung through their bond. 

_Jisung_

_Ji_

_Park Jisung fucking wake up now!_

He feels himself get lightheaded for a moment, then suddenly, the scream dies down. Once he gains his composure, he scrambled to get out of his room the same time as the door across his opens revealing Haechan. 

“It’s Chenle isn’t it?” Haechan asks even though he knew the answer.

Mark only nods.

The both of them speed walks to climb the stairs to reach Chenle’s room. They meet Jaemin and Renjun halfway and Jeno joining them on the third floor which was Jisung and Chenle’s floor. 

They all stop at Chenle’s door, not noticing Jisung’s door hanging open. Mark turns the knob and what they saw inside terrified them.

Chenle was lying motionless in Jisung’s arm with his hands covered in blood, his nose dripping with blood, his eyes bloodshot and his mouth mouthing something. Shaking their surprise, they all run to Chenle’s side.

“I’m sorry hyung I couldn’t respond. Chenle was bleeding and I-I couldn’t tap into our b-bond”, Jisung weakly said, his voice trembling.

“Hey it’s alright. Ji calm down. Deep breathes”, Jeno tries to soothe the younger.

“He’s been mumbling something. I-I couldn’t hear hi-him. Hyung he won’t stop bleeding”, Jisung chokes on a sob as he tries to hold back his tears. 

He holds his best friend closer to him, as if afraid he would be taken away.

“Ji move over”, Jaemin asks.

Jisung doesn’t move, only shakes his head and tightens his grip on Chenle.

“Ji we won’t know what he’s saying if you won’t let him go”, Renjun says in a stern voice which makes Jisung flinch. 

Mark took this chance to get Chenle out of Jisung’s hold.

“Chenle can you hear me? Chenle answer!” Mark yells.

Haechan taps Mark as if to tell him to calm down.

“Lele it’s me Mark. What is it? Who?” he tries again.

Chenle’s eyes rollback to his head and the whites only show. His hands reach over Mark’s arms and with a loud and clearer voice he manages to say,”Death. People. Dead bodies everywhere. Neo City”.

Chenle passes out in Mark’s arms and all of them look at each other with the same alarmed expression and a thought in mind.

_Something was coming_


	2. Neo Zone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "we live in constant fear of the demons inside our head, but the real demons are ourselves"

Neo City was alive before the sun rose in the east. The wailing of a banshee woke the whole country. The council and authorities were on high alert in case the wailing was caused by death that has already passed.

At 3am, Dreamers were taken out of Division Dream and transported to Division U. The governor wanted them at Neo City tower. As they were traveling, Jeno couldn't help but notice the shards of glass, big and small, that littered everywhere. Chenle has been able to control his predictions all this time. He has learned that he could instead weep for death predictions instead of wailing, so Jeno still cannot believe that Chenle has done all these damage. Chenle hasn’t wailed since his third prediction and that was 5 years ago. The boy was still unconscious with Jisung by his side. The youngest of the Dreamers have always been closest to Chenle.

"Jisung it's gonna be a long travel. You need to at least rest", Jaemin says in a hushed voice.

The younger seemed to not mind Jaemin at all. He only continued to stare and hold Chenle's hand. Jaemin has always been the one taking care of the group regardless of Mark being the leader. He just had that sense of motherly instinct that makes you warm up to him and makes him even more caring to everyone. He felt hurt that Jisung had ignored him but he understood that the younger was still in his head, probably thinking and worrying for his friend.

Haechan turns to Jisung as if sensing Jaemin's hurt. He gently taps Jisung by the shoulder to grab his attention. Jisung seem to be startled at the sudden contact and looks at him in surprise. 

"Get some rest. He won't be going anywhere. We'll watch him Ji", he says.

Jisung seemed to contemplate whether to do as he says. He then looks at him sharply as if saying that there were no room for arguments. Jisung sighs and squeezes Chenle's hands before intertwining their fingers and proceeds to lean on his seat to rest. Jaemin flashes Haechan a thankful smile who only winks his way as a response.

The trip from Dream to U passed like a blur. All of them were either staring outside or sleeping. Once they arrived, they were met by the governor’s men. They were escorted inside the tower. Fortunately, Chenle had woken five minutes before they had arrived. Still a bit shaken, Jisung stood by his side and held his hand to provide comfort for his best friend. The Dreamers stopped in front of the elevator doors and waited for them to open. Once it does, all of them loaded the elevator while the men stood guard.

“The governor and his council shall be waiting for you on floor 15”, said the man in an all black suit.

Mark nods and presses the floor the man had said. The elevator started ascending as they were enveloped in silence. 

“I want you all to keep quiet okay? Do not speak unless spoken to”, Mark breaks the silence with a reminder.

The Dreamers chorused with “yes” and “of course” completely understanding the circumstances. They were not there for fun time. They were there because of something serious they have yet to find out. After a moment, the elevator halts with a ding; an indication that they have reached their desired floor. When the elevator door opens, they were greeted with more men in black suits and intercoms. 

“The Dreamers are here Mr. Lee”, they heard a man said through the coms.

The same man gestured them to follow him and they did. Taking cautious steps, they could hear their footsteps echo through the empty hall of the building.

“Why are there no people? Isn’t there supposed to be employees?”, Jaemin asks Haechan in a hushed voice.

“I don’t know Jaem. Let’s just keep quiet. I have a really bad feeling about this”, Haechan replies in the same hushed voice. 

The two of them kept quiet after that exchange of words. They turned a corner and stopped at a big golden double doors. The man in suit knocked three times before the right side of the door opened. They were gestured to come in so they did and the door shut once they were inside. Once inside, they were met with a big office with glass for walls. A spacious desk in the middle of it with a chair turned opposite from them. A door that they didn't know existed from their left suddenly opened and a man came out of it. They were not familiar with the man but the way he walked with a sense of authority which pulled all of their attention. He stood beside the chair that was turned opposite from them and bowed. Suddenly, the chair turned and low and behold, Neo City's governor was sitting there with his hands folded upright.

"It's been too long Mark. I didn't know we'd be meeting at such circumstances", Taeyong, the governor, said.

The Dreamers stared at the governor and Mark in disbelief. It wasn't in their knowledge that the governor and their leader knew each other. 

"Dreamers please take a seat", the man standing beside the governor said.

They did as they were told even though they were still confused. Taking a seat at the big couch on the left side of the office, all of them made themselves comfortable. Well, as comfortable as they can get with the nervousness taking over their bodies. Haechan and Mark sat at both ends while Jisung and Chenle were at the middle and Jeno, Jaemin and Renjun beside them.

"I am Kim Dongyoung or simply Doyoung. The governor's advisor. And of course you know the governor, Lee Taeyong", Doyoung introduces himself to the Dreamers.

"Sir with all due respect, why are we here?" Renjun couldn't help but ask. 

He grew anxious with all the questions running inside his head. He didn't quite understand what business do they have with the governor. They didn't even know the governor and their leader knew each other until now. So, why were they there? For what purpose?

"Renjun", Mark hisses his name as if telling him that what he did was wrong.

Taeyong raises a hand, silencing Mark. Mark immediately bows his head in compliance.

"Zhong Chenle", Taeyong calls out.

At the sound of his name being called, Chenle lifts his head in surprise. The air grows thick with tension as all attention is turned to him.

"I believe you have something to tell us?" Taeyong asks.

Nervousness seeps through Chenle's veins as he isn't accustomed to getting much attention. Jisung squeezes his hand from their intertwined ones to provide comfort to his friend.  
He takes a deep breath in an attempt to calm his nerves.

"I-I dont remember everything I sa-saw", he manages to stutter out.

"It's okay. Just what you remember", Taeyong says in a calm voice, reassuring the younger that there was nothing to be nervous about.

Jaemin lays a comforting hand behind Chenle and gestures for him to breath. Chenle breathes in and out heavily once more and it seemed to calm him down. He manages to reply without any stutter this time.

"I remember seeing the tower. The tower was down and bodies. A lot of dead bodies I don't recognize".

Taeyong and Doyoung looks at each other with knitted eyebrows.

"It's the same", Doyoung says under his breathe but due to the silence in the room, it resonated.

"What's the same?" Jeno asks carefully.

"Thank you for telling us Chenle. All of you will be escorted to our accommodating facility for now", Taeyong says, completely ignoring the question.

"What facility? We aren't lab rats you can experiment on", Jeno says, venom clear in his voice.

Mark is startled with the way Jeno suddenly rose to his feet and said those words. Jeno doesn't get angry. Even when they forgot his birthday, when they played pranks on him or when Jaemin accidentally broke his weapons. 

"Watch your tone Dreamer. You're talking to the governor", Doyoung warns.

"It's okay Doyoung. Our accommodating facility isn't for experiments Jeno. It's simply just that. For accommodating our guests. You are our guests. I understand the caution. You thought we pulled you out of your division because we wanted to exploit your abilities. We're not that kind of people. You will be free here", Taeyong says with a gentle smile on his face.

Jeno grows embarrassed. He sinks to hi seat and lowers his head. 

"And I believe Mark and Haechan has something to tell you as well. Doyoung please take them", Taeyong adds.

The Dreamers had no time ask more questions. They all bow to the governor before leaving. Doyoung leads the way with the Dreamers in tow. They all walk in silence with only their footsteps making a sound. Everybody was still on high alert with their surroundings. Especially when they took a left turn and was met with what seems to be an elevator. The elevator had an eye and a hand scanner as well as a passcode to the side. Doyoung scans his hand and his left eye as well as locks in a code. The door suddenly opens and they all got in. With no one still talking, Haechan decides to break the ice.

"Are we going there hyung?" he asks Doyoung.

"You call him hyung?" Renjun interrupts the flow of conversation about to take place.

"Well yes he does. How else should he address me? And yes Haechan we are", Doyoung answers.

"Can we call you hyung too?", Jisung asks quietly.

Doyoung softly gazes at the youngest and says in a soft voice,"Of course Jisung".

Jisung smiles at Doyoung as a reply. 

"I missed that place hyung", Mark says.

"What place are you guys talking about?" Jeno asks.

"Remember when Haechan and I would leave our Division once a month and go to Division U and we tell you guys we're only going to get more supplies for our equipment? Well we half lied. We go to Division U for our monthly briefing and updates by the governor on how to train you guys and they also give us equipment and the budget", Mark says.

"So basically we're funded by the government?" asks Renjun.

"Of course. You are the future of this country. It is only right we provide you with everything you need and more", Doyoung answers for Mark.

"No more questions okay? Save that for your leader. And Mark, the governor wants them to know everything. For now, welcome to Neo Zone".

As Doyoung finishes his sentence, the door to the elevator they were riding slowly opened. For a moment, they were blinded by a bright light which they didn't know where it came from since the elevator seemed to take them down which means they were underground. Once their eyes finally adjusted to the light, they put down their arms and hands that covered their eyes and was a met by a surprising site.

**2 Hours Before the Wailing of the Banshee, Division Vision**

"Hyung psst. Ten hyung wake up", Yangyang shook Ten's sleeping form lightly.

It was midnight and the moon shined brightly. Stars littered the dark sky like little white dots on a black painted canvas. Cold air and silence from the streets enveloped the night. All would be sleeping but Yangyang seemed to be full of energy when all of his older friends were asleep. 

"Ten hyung come on wake up", Yangyang tries to wake Ten once more.

Ten stirs in his sleep. Slowly, he opens his eyes and was met by Yangyang's smiling face peering at him closely. Startled, he pushes the younger out of his face which makes Yangyang fall off from Yangyang's bed.

"What the hell Yangyang. What time is it? It's midnight?! Oh for goodness sake", Ten rants out.

Yangyang groans from the floor and rubs his butt. He landed harshly because of Ten's hard push.

"You didn't have to push me so hard hyung", he says still rubbing his sore butt.

"For what reason did you wake me up? This better be good", Ten says finally sitting up right and stretching his arms.

Yangyang gets up from the floor and sits beside Ten. He points out the window. Ten only gives him a questioning look and raises his eyebrows at him. Yangyang sighs and walks to the window. He slides the curtain covering the glass windows. Once the curtain was out of view, they were met by darkness.

"The moon is full and bright tonight hyung", Yangyang says excitedly. 

"So?"

"Come on hyung. Your power is at full potential on full moons and look there's no clouds. You have to take this opportunity", he says once more trying to convince Ten.

"You woke me up because you wanted to let me do a reading? Seriously?" Ten stares at Yangyang in disbelief.

"Well if you put it like that, it sounds mean", Yangyang says sheepishly while rubbing the back of his neck.

"Because it's mean. Ugh whatever. I'm already awake might as well do it", Ten throws his hands in disappointment and stands up.

He walks to his window that was at floor length and slides it open. He goes out to his balcony overlooking the vast wide sky with Yangyang trailing behind him. He kneels and faces where the moon is. He pulls his hands to his chest, closes his eyes, takes a deep breath and he begins to chant. He says his prayer to the moon. He says his thanks, his offerings and his promises. The night air that enveloped them grew colder and starts to pick up as soon as Ten's chant started to fasten its pace. Now it was Yangyang's favorite part. At the end of the chant, Ten lifts his hands from his chest and let it hover just a few inches from his chest. You can see sparks from his hands start to appear and when he lifts it higher and higher until his arms extend as far as they can, you can see blue sparks going from his hands to the moon. 

A brief silence is shared through the night until a gasp escapes Ten's lips and his eyes flashes open revealing his eyes rolling back to his skull. And just like that, he's sucked in a vision.

_The Neo City tower was down. Civilians run through the streets with a futile attempt to save themselves. Crashed vehicles littered the streets. Everything was either on fire or completely destroyed. A thick fog was covering the division blocking all out all possible visions._

_"Winwin take him out now!" Kun yells out._

_Winwin uses his ability and lifts himself up from the ground using a chunk of soil. He uses the crashed vehicles and controls them to attack their enemy. But the enemy only swipes his hand to the other side and the things that was supposed to knock him out goes the other way. Jaemin ran at his full speed trying to distract the enemy while Yuta and Renjun aims and fires at it simultaneously. As Lucas tries to tap into the base of the enemy, his units are shut down, blinding all of them._

_"Sir units are down. We are blinded. I repeat we are blinded sir", Yangyang speaks through the coms._

_"Jungwoo tell me you're near", Doyoung communicates._

_"ETA thirty minutes sir", Jungwoo's voice sound through the communicator._

_"Faster Jungwoo. Full speed now!" Taeyong yells._

_Jungwoo steps harder on the accelator and his car speeds through the freeway as he avoided crashed cars. Taeil and Xiaojun loads the last batch of their concoction to the plane and tells Kun they were ready._

_"V-1 rotate"_

_The jet started to move and slowly it began its climb. With great speed, Kun started their ascend steadily. Once they were up and steady in the air, Taeil and Xiaojun got ready._

_"Alright soldiers, ready to dive?" asks Taeil with a loud voice._

_"Sir yes sir!" the soldiers aboard chorused._

_"You ready DJ?" Taeil aks the younger._

_"I'm a Visionary. I will always be ready"._

_Taeil smiles at Xiaojun. Kun's voice is heard through the intercoms saying that they were dropping in five. The soldiers stood up and lined up. Once the shaft opens, they each grabbed a riffle and a loader. One by one, the soldiers jumped out of the plane._

_"You think it's gonna work?" Xiaojun asks, worried._

_"We can only hope", Taeil replies._

_On the ground, Jeno and mercenaries battle with the enemy's minions. With only some of them left, they were surrounded. But nonetheless they were fighting harder. Johnny comes to their aid with a fresh batch of soldiers with him. Jeno and Johnny nods at each other as if extending their thanks._

_"Stop!" a full voice yells._

_"All we want is the boy. Bring us the whisperer and we can stop this. We will spare all of you. Just bring us the whisperer", the deep voice of their enemy echoes._

_"You can kill all of us but you'll never have him!" Taeyong speaks with venom in his voice._

_"Then it will be done"._

_Just as he said that, Everybody started to clutch their ears, some their chest and some their head. All of them starts to bleed out black blood and slowly, every single one drops to the ground dead._

Ten gasps loudly holding his chest as he is sucked out of the vision. Yangyang ran to his side and helps him up. They both went inside Ten's bedroom. Yangyang leans Ten on the bed's frame as he gets him a glass of water. He comes back not a moment after with a glass of water.

"Are you okay hyung?" Yangyang asks worriedly.

"I'm sorry I shouldn't have told you try", he adds.

Ten chuckles softly and pats the younger's head.

"Wake the others up. We have to go somewhere", Ten says.

With no questions asked, Yangyang nods and leaves Ten. He first wakes Kun, then Xiaojun, Lucas and Hendery. He wakes Winwin last. They all dress up as presentable as they can and went to Ten's room together.

"This better be good Chittaphon", Kun warns.

"I had a vision. We need to see the governor", Ten says.

"The governor? A vision? Wait hold on. What's the vision all about?" Hendery asks.

"Questions later. We need to go now".

They collectively don't understand but decides not to question anything. They quickly lock and exit their house and goes to their garage. Kun, Yangyang and Ten all rode in a car while Xiaojun, Hendery, Lucas and Winwin rode on another one. They were driving while Kun contacted the governor's advisor, Doyoung.

"Kun? Jeez it's 1 am can't this wait?" Doyoung grumbles from the other side.

"Well it can't because we're on our way to Division U to see the governor because my seer just had a vision and it concerns the entire country. Well that's what he said anyway. Can you just please notify the governor? ETA in an hour. Thanks", Kun ends the call not leaving for anymore conversation.

They drove in complete silence for another thirty minutes. Ten was about to say something when a loud shrill scream was heard causing both their cars to halt completely. Everyone had their hands to their ears trying to block the sound. It was a good five minutes before the scream died down. 

'What the fuck was that?" Xiaojun asks.

"Banshee", Winwin replies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please do leave kind words. It makes me really happy. Thank you :0


	3. Limitless

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "you are the last snowfall before the spring"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the long wait. school was being a beach

"I want the Aces here in 20. I want them briefed and sent to Neo Zone. And I want the Dreamers out of Dream and transported here as soon as the sun rises. Do it now", Taeyong commands.

A few minutes before the banshee wailed, he received a call from Doyoung telling him the Visionaries were on their way to their division. The seer was granted a vision at midnight and it seemed to concern the entire country. He didn't question what the seer saw. If all of them were coming to Division U, then it must be very serious. All the damages the tower had gone through from the wailing was taken care of instantly. Several men made the repairs for the building and with the help of technology, the tower was as good as new as if nothing had happened. The tower was cleared of people after the repairs. No one was coming in or out without permissions straight from the governor.

Doyoung made the calls and arrangements commanded by the governor. He had his phone glued to his hand and a clip board to the other. The tower was at high security with men scattered at every entrance and exit. Four cars were sent to Division 127 to bring the Aces and 3 to rendezvous with the Visionaries. It didn't take too long before the Visionaries arrived escorted with the governor's men. They all looked a little disoriented. Given that it was still dawn, it was understandable. All of them were scanned and went through inspections before permissions to enter were granted. Once done, they were taken to the governor.

"Chittaphon talk to me", Taeyong says with authority.

And Ten tells him of what he saw. Of how wrecked Neo City was, of how outnumbered they were, of how they were so close to losing and that whatever was laying waste to their country, was looking for a whisperer. Everybody was attentive when Ten spoke. It was the first time the Visionaries heard Ten's vision so they were as shocked and out of words as the governor and his advisor was. When Ten stopped talking, silence followed. It was so quiet; you could probably hear a pin drop. After much silence, Doyoung seemed to recover from his shock and decided to speak.

"But who was doing all that? Surely you saw who it is, right?" he asks.

Ten shakes his head in disagreement. "Unfortuantely, no. All I heard was their voice".

"But they were looking for something. Or someone. A whisperer, right? What's that? Is that like an animal? I've never heard of that", Kun asks, confused.

"A whisperer is someone who can communicate through minds if a bond is established and if their abilities are developed enough, they can see what you can see through your bond", Taeyong explains.

"That's so cool! Imagine being able to talk through your head", Lucas exclaims excitedly.

'Lucas", Hendery calls his name as a warning.

Lucas clears his throat and settles back on his seat again as he says a quiet apology from his outburst. Winwin only shakes his head in amusement. He got used to Lucas' sudden outbursts of excitement after years of living with him. It was entertaining seeing the younger being a ball of energy waiting to just burst when he finds something exciting or discovers something new. It was one of Lucas' charms aside from his extremely attractive face. 

Doyoung taps his in-ear as a buzz resounds through the room. He nods in acknowledgement to whatever the person on the communicator is saying. 

"Aces are in Neo Zone now sir", he informs the governor.

'Woah the Aces? What for?" Xiaojun asks.

"If whatever this is, is coming for our country, then we need people. And they were in the vision weren't they? The Dreamers are being transported as we speak. Now follow me", Taeyong says in one breath, leaving no more room for questions.

Shrugging their shoulders, the Visionaries followed the governor and his advisior. Exiting the room they were in, they walked in silence and in hurry. Turning a corner, they were met by an elevator with a bunch of security lock machines at the side of it. The governor took care of them and once done, the doors opened and they were ushered in. When they were inside, they felt themselves going down and Yangyang couldn't help but ask.

"So where exactly are we going?".

"Neo Zone. Our accommodating facility", Doyoung straightly answers.

Yangyang grows confused. "If it's an accommodating facility, why is it underground? Shouldn't it be like I don't know, at the top floor or something? And the elevator has a bunch of security machines which I'm assuming only the governor has access to-maybe the advisor too but I don't know. You guys are weird", he rambles.

Taeyong smiles fondly at Yangyang. He didn't make a mistake picking him to be part of the Visionaries, huh?

"Very smart Liu Yangyang. Yes, you are correct. Our accommodating facility for our guests is at the top floor. But Neo Zone is our accommodating facility, training grounds and our equipment and weapons storage for the Aces and our forces. Now, the Visionaries and the Dreamers will be welcomed to Neo Zone as well", he explains.

Everybody was rendered speechless upon absorbing the new information they were just told. All their life, they believed the Aces only had sanctuary in Division 127. They were told each Division was for each group of handpicked people by the governor like Vision was for them; the Visionaries. As they were still in shock, the elevator had then stopped. They seem to come back to their senses once the doors opened and when they did, they heard it before they saw it. Four men having a very loud conversation right in the middle of the wide room. Well, three of them were talking and one was listening. However, when they all got out of the lift, the four of them seemed to stop and stare at them. It was only then that they realized that they were the Aces.

"I'm very pleased to see that you have made yourselves comfortable", Taeyong starts but all of them didn't seem to give attention to him. The Aces' eyes were fixated on the Visionaries as the Visionaries' were to them.

Doyoung scrunches his eyebrows together as he notices someone unusually present from the group.

"Johnny what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in 127?" he asks.

"Oh, dear advisor, don't worry. I'm sure Yoonoh can handle a few hours of me gone", Johnny answers cheekily.

"And what do we have here. Chittaphon Leechaiyapornkul. Pleasure seeing you again. It's been an awfully long time, won't you agree?", Johnny greets and bows mockingly at Ten who only rolls his eyes in annoyance as he crosses his arms. He doesn't pay attention to the questioning gazes directed at him by his friends. 

"You two know each other?" Winwin asks. As far as he knows, Ten never leaves their division by himself nor does he go outside on his own. If Ten wants to go somewhere, he always has either Yangyang or him by his side. Ten never likes going out alone. It was weird but they never really questioned it because of how Ten becomes uncomfortable when they mention it.

"Oh but of course. We know each other _very_ well", Johnny smirks.

"No. We don't. Can we move on?", Ten replies, clearly annoyed.

Sensing his annoyance, Kun claps his hands once to grab everyone's attention from the two. He smiles first before saying, "So, shall we introduce ourselves? Just for formalities".

"That's a great idea! I'll start! Hi! I'm Wong Yukhei or Huang Xuxi but everybody calls me Lucas. I-", Lucas starts to introduce himself when he stops abruptly because of Doyoung suddenly raising a hand signaling a halt.

"Did I say something wrong?" Lucas asks worriedly, afraid he had done something he shouldn't have.

Doyoung's hand is still in the air and the other in his left ear, his face contorted in a tight expression and after a few seconds, his face visibly relaxes but his eyebrows still pulled together.

"No, it's fine Lucas. Sir the Dreamers have arrived. They are being escorted in the building as we speak", Doyoung says.

Taeyong stands up and fixes his suit before saying, "Then I must meet them. Gentlemen, I trust you to be in your best behavior. The Dreamers will join you shortly".

All of them bows politely at the governor as Taeyong smiles softly at them. He nods as an appreciation before turning his back at them and leaving with Doyoung just a few inches behind him, following shortly. They watch Taeyong and Doyoung's retreating back until they disappear from their line of sight. Not knowing what to do, they are met with silence.

"So, as I was saying, I am Wong Yukhei or Huang Xuxi but everybody calls me Lucas, '99. I'm part of the Visionaries and I hack things", Lucas says excitedly, breaking the ice.

"Pleasure meeting you Lucas. I'm Kim Jungwoo but I go by Zeus, '98. Mechanist", Jungwoo introduces himself.

Lucas' face goes from a smiling one to an overly excited expression as he says in a loud voice, "Shut up! You're Zeus?! oh my god you made the fastest engine known to man that's like, so cool!"

Jungwoo shys away from recognition. He isn't still used to people recognizing his work for it was rare for him to introduce himself as Zeus.

"Hey I'm Moon Taeil, '94. I specialize in chemicals", Taeil says as he shook hands with the Visionaries.

"Hi I'm Qian Kun, '96. I lead these idiots", Kun says and gestures at his friends.

Feeling offended, Xiaojun suddenly exclaims, "Hey! I'm no idiot! Lucas is the idiot!".

"That's mean DJ!" Lucas says back which results to a playful argument for the both of them. 

"Sorry about that. I'm Ten but I guess you already knew that, '96. The seer", Ten says.

"I'm Johnny if you didn't already catch that, '95. I'm 127's leader", says Johnny.

"I'm Dong Sicheng or Winwin is fine, '97. Telekinetic ability is what I have".

"The name's Wong Kunhang but I prefer Hendery, '99. I assist the old man".

"Hello I'm Liu Yangyang, '00. Crytologist. I translate codes and shit you don't understand".

Noticing that his friends had done introducing themselves, Xiaojun pauses from his banter with Lucas and introduces himself too. "Sorry about that. I'm Xiao Dejun but they call me DJ or Xiaojun, '99. Weapons specialist".

Everybody seemed to introduce themselves but one. All of them turn to the one man with his face showing only the left side of his face for his right side was covered with a mask. He proceeds to pull his left arm over his body and will it to face them, taps his temples a few times where a device is now visible before a hologram appears. In the hologram, it reads his name and position. 

_Nakamoto Yuta, '95. Assassin._

"Yuta doesn't talk much", Johnny says.

Noticing the little device on Yuta's head, Yangyang exclaims, "Hey! That's from Vision. We made that".

Surprised, Jungwoo replies, "Really? We know it's custom-made from Vision. We didn't know you guys made it though".

"Oh? Taeyong personally asked for that. I thought it was for him", Kun says.

Feeling quite comfortable and accustomed to each other's presence, the Aces and Visionaries broke into a chatter. Conversing with one another, you would think they're all normal people who have been friends for years who have recently reunited. Their voices mingle well with each other and bounce through the empty room. They occupied the room with their presence and voice that it felt and sounded like it was full of people. All of them engaged with each other's conversation except Yuta. He really doesn't talk that much. Nobody really knew why. When he was announced to be one of the Aces, he had already been silent. It was through the quarter of his membership as an Ace when he was given the generator as a means of communication. Before that, he often writes down what he has to say.

Withdrawn from conversation of Ten and his vision, Yuta decides to observe the Visionaries. He first looks at Kun. He notices how Kun's eyes crinkle a little bit while intently listening and throwing a phrase or two to the conversation. Then he averts his gaze ever so subtly to Ten who's the one talking. Ten's focus on telling everyone his vision has him quite surprised. He seemed sassy with the way he talked earlier. He transfers his line of sight to Hendery. He notices his face first. Hendery had sharp features but he also appears soft. Maybe because of his smile or the way he talks. Xiaojun and Yangyang are quite similar at first glance in Yuta's opinion. The noticeable difference was Xiaojun's thick eyebrows and Yangyangs mouth shape. His attention is taken by Lucas. The boy was loud and seemed to be always hyperactive. He had an attractive face and tall physique too. He last looks at Winwin and that's the only time he notices him. Unlike the others, his presence wasn't overly explosive. He wasn't loud like Lucas. He doesn't stand as proud as Ten. Winwin also doesn't carry an aura that screams for attention like Hendery. He doesn't seem like the leader type like Kun. His smile was timid unlike Yangyang's bright ones. He was skinny unlike Xiaojun who appears to be muscly. 

Yuta doesn't even notice how long he's been staring at Winwin or how he was comparing him to the others. He was admiring him quietly. He had never met a person who had pulled his attention that long before. It was as if the longer he looked, the more entranced he was as if a spell had been cast on him. It's only when Taeil tugs on his arm that he snaps out of his reverie. He looks at Taeil with a questioning gaze who only gestures for him to focus. He tries his best to focus on their conversation but Winwin's presence had him focusing on him. It was harder to focus and he had never felt that way before. He was the kind of person who wasn't distracted easily but Winwin was making it hard for him. Still in his head and staring off into space, he hears his name being called out.

"Nakamoto you still with us? Hey Yuta!", Johnny calls.

Snapping his head to Johnny's direction, he nods automatically not noticing the way Winwin turned to him.

"So what do you guys think? Are we gonna die?" Hendery asks, chuckling to himself.

"It's weird isn't it? We never really had enemies, right? We're all business and whatnot, except for Battle of the Forces. We never engage in violence", Jungwoo says, quite confused himself.

"What do you think Yuta? You're the assassin. Have you overheard something or maybe had a client hungry for vengeance", Xiaojun jokes, half serious. 

_'I don't take clients who have a clean slate. I do background checks. I'm an assassin not a cold-blooded murderer'_ ,Yuta's holographic message reads.

"I didn't mean to offend", Xiaojun puts his hands up in surrender.

"Better sleep with one eye open tonight DJ", Taeil says jokingly at Xiaojun whose eyes widen and visibly pales a little.

 _'Don't worry Dejun. I won't kill you. Yet'_ ,Yuta says.

With a nervous laugh, Xiaojun replies, "That's nice to hear".

A few seconds of silence comes after Xiaojun's reply before they all burst in laughter and Yuta letting out a breathy one. They all felt comfortable with each other's presence. It took a whole minute before they all calmed down with little tears coming out at the side of their eyes. All of them turned to the elevator from before as it suddenly made a 'ding' sound. Signaling that it was opening. They all grew quiet once more once they see new faces with Doyoung.

"Hey Doyoung. You're back", Kun greets.

They all stood up from their sitting positions on the floor to greet the new comers.

"Oooh kids. Hi! How are you younger people", Lucas waves energetically at all of them.

"Oh my god! Mark! Hyuck! I've missed you guys!" Johnny suddenly exclaims as he runs towards Mark and Haechan at full speed, hugging the both of them, lifting them from the ground and spinning them in the air like a father would to his newborn baby.

It was an amusing site for all of them. A six foot tall man spinning two full grown adult in the air who seemed to be struggling. After a moment, Johnny sets them down as he huffs for air. Mark and Haechan finds their balance automatically. The Dreamers stare at all the unfamiliar faces ogling at them weirdly.

"Uh why are you looking at us like that?" Jaemin asks, confusion evident in his face.

Taeil coo's at them before saying, "Aw you guys are little kids".

Renjun huffs out a breathy groan and straightens his posture.

"We're not kids. Jisung yes, he's a child but us? We're adults", he says.

"But you're so tiny", Lucas says in a small voice, his left arm reaching to pat Renjun's head only for Renjun's hand to shot up, gripping Lucas' wrist tightly before it made contact with his head. His grip still tight, through gritted teeth and eyes narrowed to slits, he says in a threatening voice, "Call me tiny again-I don't care if you're older or whatever, I'll fold your body in ways you didn't know possible".

Pain evident in his face, Lucas says while groaning, "Yeah ow- you can let go now. Ow-yeah I won't call you that I'm sorry please let go of my hand".

Lucas cradles his hand with the other with a pained expression as soon as Renjun lets go of it. Doyoung lets out a nervous chuckle upon witnessing the events that just happened. He won't ever admit it but the aura surrounding Renjun was scary for him. He had that blank expression and it didn't help that the boy hadn't smiled since the moment he had seen him. Renjun and Jeno were both scary looking kids in Doyoung's eyes.

"Renjun, stop scaring people. I'm sorry about that. He's not a people person. I'm Jaemin by the way, '00. I wield the invisibility and speed of light ability", Jaemin introduces himself as well as apologizes for his friend's actions who only huffs by his side.

"Hey guys! I'm Mark, '99. Leader of the Dreamers", Mark beams as he introduces himself.

"Hey you're one of us too. You too Haechan. You have to introduce yourself as such", Jungwoo says.

The Dreamers snap their heads in Mark and Haechan's direction. Yet another surprise for them.

"You guys are Aces too? Just how many more things are you keeping from us?" Jeno asks in exaperation.

"Wait, you guys don't know?" Johnny asks.

"We weren't allowed to tell them, remember?" Haechan says.

"Oh right right. Protocol and all", Johnny realizes.

"Aces and Visionaries, kindly introduce yourselves to the Dreamers and get acquainted while I go fetch the governor. Excuse me", Doyoung says before taking his leave.

They all bow lightly at Doyoung before the Aces and Visionaries carried on their introductions again. They said their names and position while getting a little sidetracked because of the questions. Once done, the rest of the Dreamers were left to introduce themselves.

"I'm Jeno, '00. Close combat is my specialization", Jeno says.

"Oh hey I make your weapons. The one LJN with them right?", Xiaojun says.

"Wow really? Yeah that's my initials. I like them", Jeno replies with surprise evident in his voice to which Xiaojun only nods and smiles.

"Huang Renjun, '00. Assassin in training", Renjun says.

"Oh you're an assassin too? Yuta is one too!" Jungwoo exclaims.

Renjun and Yuta meet each other's eyes after Jungwoo's statement. The both of them held each other's gaze for a moment before breaking it and smiling timidly to themselves as if they had read each other's minds and understood everything. Everybody shrugged it off, not really understanding it and ushered the remaining Dreamers to introduce themselves.

"Hi I'm Chenle, '01. I'm a banshee", Chenle says in his deep scratchy voice.

"Were you the one who wailed at 2?" Ten asks softly.

"Was it too loud?" Chenle grows timid with his question to which Jisung takes notice who then squeezes his friend's hand as if to reassure him he was there for him.

"It's alright. It's in your nature to do that", Ten assures him to which Chenle nods and visibly relaxes.

"I'm Jisung, '02. Whisperer", Jisung introduces himself with a little wave of his free hand.

Upon his introduction, the Aces and Visionaries grows wide-eyed as they look at each other. 

"Why are you guys looking at Sungie like that?" Haechan asks, confused.

Like a fish out of water, Lucas closes and opens his mouth a few times before forming words and letting it come out, "The vision! Ten had a vision about you".

Startled by the new information, the Dreamers were at lost. They came to Division U thinking the governor wanted Chenle because of his wailing. They had no idea of a vision about Jisung. This was all surprising and new to all of them.

"What vision?" Jisung asks.

"Basically it was Neo City being thrashed. The tower was down, bunch of dead bodies everywhere, we were fighting back but losing miserably. And they were looking for a whisperer. Couldn't really see their face though", Ten says.

"What do they want with Jisung?" Haechan asks.

"I don't know. All the person looking for him was saying was they wanted that if we handed him over then all the damage would be over", Ten replies.

Scared, Jisung visibly pales and his grip on Chenle's hands tightens. Chenle tries to soothe his best friend by stroking his back ever so lightly and telling him everything was going to be alright. It was silent for they really didn't know what to say at the moment. They didn't intend to terrify the younger but it was inevitable in their situation. 

"Don't worry Ji. If they want you, they'll have to kill me first", Renjun says, his voice and expression serious.

"I don't want anybody dying for me", Jisung says in a quiet voice.

"Nobody's dying", a loud voice says.

They all turn to where the voice came from only for them to realize it to be Taeyong. Taeyong walks over to them with Doyoung following him behind. He takes a seat with them on the ground.

"Whatever that's coming for us, I can't promise you that no one will be hurt but I will try my very hardest so no one dies alright?" Taeyong says to the group.

"We don't know what's coming or who. I pulled the Dreamers out of Dream because we know what they want and we won't be handing you over Jisung. With a seer, we have an advantage. We have the best people here, we will try our best to be ready", Taeyong adds.

They all seem to visibly relax at Taeyong's assurance.

"Am I late?" they hear someone ask to which they turn to only for the Aces to break into a smile, stand up and meet him halfway.

"You little shit what are you doing here?" Johnny asks.

"What? You think you can leave me to take care of paperwork? I don't fucking think so. Besides the governor wanted me here. Hey gov", he replies to Johnny at the same time greets Taeyong with a dimpled smile and a little wave to which Taeyong only nods in aknowledgement.

"Hey I'm Yoonoh but I prefer Jaehyun, '97. I take care of Johnny's mess", he introduces himself to the people in the room who doesn't seem to recognize him.

"Now that everybody is here, pay attention. Everybody will be training with each other. Your skills, abilities and knowledge, you will share that with each other. We'll try to prepare as much as we can. Soldiers from the Battle of the Forces are being withdrawn and are to arrive later in the evening. We'll supply you with everything you need so if you need anything, you can directly ask me or the governor. Any questions?" Doyoung ends his little speech with a question.

All of them shook their head no. They all understood everything. Everyone did except Jaehyun who throws Doyoung a full blown smile with his eyes crinkled.

"What do you want Jung?" Doyoung asked in an annoyed voice.

Amused, Jaehyun chuckles lowly before replying, "Oh come now. Don't act like we don't know each other. We made so many great memories".

Doyoung huffs and rolls his eyes. He looks at Taeyong questioningly who only shrugs and nods his way. Turning on his heel, he walks to leave but being the stubborn man he is, Jaehyun follows quickly calling Doyoung's name. The Aces could only chuckle at the two. 

"Do they have history together?" Winwin asks Yuta.

 _'Oh you have no idea'_ Yuta replies.

With the things that had happened between the two, Yuta was right. And they had no idea what fate had in store for all of them.


	4. Love Again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Not all of us are granted another chance at love, so if you are one of the few who are, take it"

Yangyang munched on a barbecue sauce glazed chicken leg. All of them were now sitting together on a long table, having brunch. All the talk and travel made them hungry that all you could hear from the room was silverware making contact with their plates and exchanging of short words asking for a dish to be passed around. Taeyong sat at the head of the table, sipping his coffee while letting his thoughts run wild.

When the position of Neo City’s governor was passed down to him by his father, he never really thought much of it. Ever since he was young, he had been learning on how to lead their country in all ways possible. He was present at every gathering and meeting his father attended. Every step his father took, he followed. Every decision his father would make, he was asked what he would do in that kind of situation. At a young age, his eyes were opened to the reality of his upbringing. He was born to be a leader; to make decisions, to serve people, to make the world a better place.

Of course, his childhood wasn’t always about work. He grew up in a very loving household. His father; former governor, would always make sure that their family was well taken care of amidst all his duties. Always having a day reserved for them where no work-related things would he be taking on. His mother, was a very lovely woman. A heart made of gold and a face of an angel, it was not hard for the citizens of Neo City; the nctzens, to love her. While her husband was serving the people through politics, she had her orphanage that took care of children who didn’t have a home anymore. They were the perfect little family. 

Being the only child, he was often lonely with only the helpers at their house to play with. Sure, he loved his father who carried him on his back who acted as a plane. He liked going with his mother to the orphanage because he could play with kids of all ages. But he yearned for a sibling. Someone who he can play with, someone to talk to and someone who can be there for him at any given time. He tried asking his parents for one but they couldn’t. His mother had a weak heart so they couldn’t afford having her go through all the process of giving birth again and he understood. He really did, but it didn’t mean he couldn’t be sad about it.

So, one stormy night, his parents were running late for dinner and he was getting worried because of the weather when the headlights of his parents car shined through their steel-barred gates and he couldn’t help but run to their door, throwing it open, ready to greet his parents only for him to notice that they had someone with them. A boy about his age or maybe younger, was shivering through the layers of blanket draped over him held his mother’s hands. His worry doubled when he saw the boy’s appearance. His hair dripping wet, his nose pink and his lips almost blue. Ushering them inside, he instantly told the helpers to run a warm bath for the boy as well as to fetch a fresh set of clothes. He didn’t bother asking who or where he was from. It didn’t matter at the moment. The boy needed help and he was willing to give it to him.

Since then, him and the boy, who had introduced himself as Kim Dongyoung became friends. It was not long before he asked his parents if they could legally adopt Dongyoung. It wasn’t a hard decision for they learned to love Dongyoung. The boy was charming, honest and smart for his age. Only a week after that discussion, the papers were ready and Donyoung became legally part of their family. Finding his name a mouthful, they opted to calling him Doyoung whilst Taeyong referred to him as Doie and Doyoung called Taeyong, Yongie. From then on, Doyoung was selected to be Taeyong’s advisor when he would be pronounced as governor. 

Leading Neo City wasn’t as hard as Taeyong thought it would be. He thinks it’s because his father was an outstanding leader in his time which made it almost easier for him and maybe because Doyoung was of great help. Taeyong won’t admit it to Doyoung but he knows he wouldn’t be the great leader the nctzens knew without Doyoung by his side. When he picked the Aces, Dreamers and Visionaries, Doyoung was there, helping him. Giving him advice and providing valuable information that could help him pick who would be worthy of such position and title. Now looking at the people before him, he couldn’t help but be proud of the decisions he made four years ago. All of the sleepless nights, skipped meals and endless briefings were worth it.

“Why aren’t you eating?”, Doyoung asks Taeyong which snaps him out of his train of thoughts. Sitting at his right side, Doyoung stopped mid chew when he noticed Taeyong staring off into space, looking lost in thought which he was. 

Blinking slowly, Taeyong turns to Doyoung before answering, “I’m not that hungry”.

“You haven’t consumed anything since this morning. Eat”, Doyoung commands and resumes eating.

Sighing, Taeyong places two boiled eggs on his plate and a piece of bread. He slowly eats his food while observing the people on the table.

"So what are doing after this?" Jungwoo asks, his mouth half full with food.

"No talking when mouth is full Woo", Taeil pointed out.

Jungwoo rolls his eyes before replying, "Yes dad" and continued to stuff his mouth with more food.

"Well, first, we're gonna see how far your skills and abilities have developed then we'll decide what you're gonna work on. We're having each of your divisions, including Division U put to high security as of now. We don't want to be caught off guard", Doyoung says as he wipes his mouth with a napkin and all of them nods in unerstanding.

🌑 

  
  


After the meal, they were asked to step aside from the table and they watched as the table suddenly disappeared from the ground as if it was swallowing it under. Taeyong raises an arm high above his head with his hand in a tight fist and flicks his wrist in a circular motion, raises a finger, flicking it front and sideways twice before snapping a finger and just like magic, the whole room darkens. Some let out a gasp of surprise because of the lack of light. A few seconds passes before a spotlight is directed to where Taeyong and Doyoung are. Now standing in a circular podium that is continuously rising from the ground, some lights start to illuminate the room and they notice that the walls that were once stone are now glass. 

"What exactly are we doing?" asks Jaemin to which Taeyong replies, "Doyoung told you didn't he? We'll see if all the years of training have done you some good".

"Now, when you're called, stand in the middle. Based on your specialization, you will be tested. A word of advice; give it your all. Show me what you're capable of. Don't. Hold. Back", Taeyong adds strongly.

They all step back from the middle of room as a podium rises from the ground with laser beams surrounding it. At the side of it emerges a wall full of different weapons. The Dreamers stand in amazement. They've never seen something like that before.

"Zhong Chenle"

As his name is called, his head shots up. They all say words of encouragement to the younger as he breathes out heavily to release tension from his body. With small strides, he walks to the podium as the laser beams are turned off. Once he's inside, it was as if a whole world suddenly appeared in front of his eyes. 

_So many people surrounded him. He takes a few steps back in an attempt to escape the people only for his back to come in contact with something or rather, someone. Turning around, he sees a muscled man hovering over him. Cowering, he backs away._

_"Are you lost little boy?" the man asks in a creepy voice_

_"N-no I'm sorry. Please get a-away from m-me", he stutters._

_The men takes a look at him before laughing obnoxiously._

_"Aww is the little boy scared? Don't worry we won't kill you that fast", another one says, cooing at him._

_"Please get away. I don't want to hurt you", he says in a low voice_

From the outside of the podium, The Aces, Visionaries and Dreamers watches what's happening to Chenle through a big glass screen. 

"Is he gonna be okay?" Jisung asks, afraid for his friend.

"Don't worry Ji. I'm sure Chenle can handle them", Mark assures the younger who just nodded weakly.

_The men all laughed once again._

_'You think you can hurt us? What are you gonna do? Stare at us until we die?" a man says before laughing once more. The man stops mid laugh when he suddenly feels his chest tightening. He looks at Chenle who's already staring at him._

_"Wha-what are y-you doi-ing?" the man manages to choke out as he hold his chest._

_Chenle continues to stare at him, unblinking. Slowly, the man loses balance, causing for him to drop to the floor. Several men ran towards him only for them to collapse next to him. One by one, they drew their last breaths. Chenle stands up from the ground and locks eye with the muscular man who he bumped into. The man backs away with every step Chenle took. Now backed into a wall, the man had nowhere to go as Chenle tilts his head to the side, never breaking eye contact. Slowly, the man felt himself having a hard time breathing so he tries to take big gulps of air but it was no use. He felt pain in his stomach. His arms were failing him as it rested loosely on his side. His head drumming, he screams in agony._

_"What are you doing? Wh-what's h-happening to me?!" he cries._

_"I'm giving you what you wanted. Staring at you until you die", Chenle says and within a second, the man lays motionless on the ground, dead._

Within a second, everything Chenle saw, vanished before his very eyes. He found himself standing in the middle of the room on the podium. The Dreamers were the first to approach him. They told him he did well.

"That was faster than I thought it would take", Taeyong remarked as thy all looked at him from the ground.

"Thank you sir", Chenle said as he smiled weakly at the compliment.

"We'll try that again from a bigger scale. What do-" Taeyong was cut off mid-sentence for Chenle has suddenly fainted. Mark catches the limp body of the younger in his arms. Worried, everybody else approached them.

"It must've drained him. I'll take him to the infirmary", Mark says.

"No. Someone will take him", Taeyong says as he nods at Doyoung to which Doyoung responds by calling someone to pick up the boy. Not a moment later, four people busted in the room with a stretcher. As they wheeled Chenle out of the room, Jisung tried to go with them but Mark convinced him enough to calm him down that they would take care of his best friend. Resuming the evaluation, the next people were called.

"Nakamoto, Huang Renjun and Lee Jeno"

Both of them looked at each other in surprise. They were in the same line of work but it was a bit unexpected. They had different principles which would undeniably clash.

"Pick your weapons", Doyoung announces.

The three of them walked to the wall mounted with various types of weapons.Jeno picks up knives and tucks them in his leg and his thighs, a katana and straps it to his back and bandages his fists. While in complete synchronization, Yuta and Renjun picked up two pistols and tucked them in their leg holster, a bunch of ammunition, a bow placed across their body and an M16. Looking at each other, grinning, they fist bumped. 

"They've been smiling at each other since they met", whispers Jungwoo to Jaemin.

"I know. Renjun was never like that when we first met", replies Jaemin who finds it just as odd.

"Maybe because they're in the same field", Taeil joins the conversation to which both Jaemin and Jungwoo shrugs. 

Stepping into the podium, all three of them stand back to back, preparing for what may come their way.

"Prepare to synch your communicator with them Yuta", says Taeyong to which he nods to.

Yuta hands Renjun and Jeno a thin sticker-like object to which he gestures to stick to their temples to which they did. Once they do, they hear Yuta's voice in their head.

_"Hey. Is it clear?"_

"This just feels like when Jisung talks to us", Jeno says out loud.

"You can talk to him and with each other in your head but it only lasts for thirty minutes so I suggest you finish your evaluations within that time", Taeyong warns.

"We'll do our best", Renjun says.

"I know you will".

With that, the room vanishes from their sight as another scenery appears before them.

_The three of them stood in the middle of a broken down building surrounded by gremlins. Their backs together, they tried to think of a plan to take them all out. Noticing the stairs at the side, Yuta nudges the both of them and points his head to it._

_"Renjun and I shoot from above and you take care of them from the ground. Sounds good?" Yuta says, his voice echoing through their heads._

_Renjun and Jeno collectively nods in understanding. Yuta climbs the stairs on the left while Renjun climbs the one on the right. Jeno draws his katana, gripping it with both his hands, he positions it in front of his body. Renjun and Yuta positions their bow as they draw their arrows, getting ready to shoot just as the gremlins suddenly started growling at them and as they growled louder, some of them grew wings from their backs and started to fly._

_"Where the fuck did their wings come from?" Renjun asks in surprise, his voice louder than usual in their heads._

_They had no time to respond as the gremlins charged at them. Jeno swings his katana at the gremlins coming his way, taking out as many as he can. With great speed, Renjun and Yuta shoots the flying gremlins one after another. Gremlin blood splattering everywhere, they continued to kill them all._

_"Jeno on your six!" shouts Yuta through the communicator._

_Jeno twirls mid-air with his katana which slices the gremlin closing in on him. As Yuta shoots with his bow, he notices he's running out of arrows so, after he draws his last one, he throws it on the ground and loads his M16 and continues to shoot at the last few flying gremlins. Renjun having long used up his arrows, does the same as Yuta. After loading his ammunitions, Renjun aims at Yuta's direction to which Yuta takes notice._

_"Renjun, lower down your weapon" says Yuta lowly but it was past thirty minutes and the device has stopped working so Renjun couldn't hear him but Yuta didn't know that._

_Stabbing the last two gremlin on the ground together, Jeno notices Renjun. Confusion and surprise evident on his face, he looks at Renjun._

_"Renjun what the fuck are you doing?! Lower down your weapon now!" Jeno yells at Renjun to which Renjun ignores and continues to aim the rifle at Yuta. Panic written across Jeno's face, he looks at Yuta and Renjun in back and forth. Still not believing what's happening right in front of him, he yells at Renjun once again. "This is not the time to be a hard headed asshole Renjun. Put it down!"_

_But as if not hearing a word, Renjun does not put down the gun. Yuta finally notices that his communicator does not work anymore so, he flashes the hologram letters to Renjun._

_'Renjun put down the gun. I'm not your enemy', it read._

From outside the scenery, the air is thick with tension and their faces all pulled in a confused expression as to what is happening. 

"What is Renjun doing? If he pulls that trigger on Yuta I'm going to fucking kill him", Johnny says.

"Is he crazy? Yuta can kill him before he pulls the trigger on him!" Mark remarks.

_"Renjun what the fuck is wrong with you?! Put the fucking gun down!" Jeno continues to yell at him._

_Renjun does the opposite of what Jeno yells at him to do. He takes a deep breathe, closes and opens his eyes and pulls the trigger in a millisecond. Yuta stayed glued on his spot as Jeno watches wide-eyed. The bullet flying in the air only manages to graze Yuta's cheek as they hear a low shrill voice and a thud. Yuta turns around to notice a winged-gremlin on the ground, dead. Blinking slowly he realizes what happened. Slowly facing Renjun, whose now lowering his gun, he smiles at him. Jeno stood below them, still in shock. Slowly, the scenery disappears._

"What the fuck just happened?" Jeno says, still in shock.

Everybody crowded over them as they step outside of the podium. Mark slaps Renjun's head from behind lightly before saying, "That move was really dangerous. Yuta was ready to pull his pistol on you". Surprised, Renjun looked at Yuta who smiles at him before the familiar hologram letters appeared, _'I noticed your aim on the last second. It was pulled farther from my face'_ it read.

"So you knew? That's so cool!" Lucas says excitedly which made Renjun chuckle softly.

"Everything excites you huh?" Renjun says, amused.

"I've never really known how to handle those so it's really cool for me", Lucas replies, still smiling.

"Maybe I can help you with that", Renjun says.

"Really?" excitement still in his voice, Lucas grinned widely at Renjun who grimaces in return.

"I take it back".

"Hey! You already said you would. No take backs", Lucas said with a slightly frowned face.

"Lose the smile and I'll think about it", replies Renjun which made Lucas smile but straightens his lips once Renjun looks at him with a glare. His excitement shows through his bright eyes and when he animatedly tells Kun of what Renjun just told him.

"You almost gave me a heart attack Junnie and you! Lee Jeno! your arms are bleeding", Jaemin nags at his best friend and boyfriend.

"Relax nana. It'll heal", Jeno says, chuckling softly at how worried Jaemin is.

"You're too young to have a heart attack Jaem. You're over reacting", Renjun rolls his eyes as he says this. Jaemin slaps his arm which makes Renjun hiss in pain.

"God my arms are sore stop touching me".

"Oops", Jaemin looks at him sheepishly which Renjun just rolls his eyes once again.

Taeyong has a small smile on his face as he applauds the trio from above. Their attention is pulled to him.

"Impressive. I admit, I underestimated you Huang. Good job", Doyoung says.

"Better not underestimate me again then, _hyung_ ", Renjun replies, his face now pulled in a serious expression.

"Oh he won't be", Taeyong says with a low chuckle.

After Yuta, Renjun and Jeno's evaluation, Winwin was called. Although he was a bit nervous, he tried his hardest to calm himself for he knew that if his nerves got the better of him, he'd have a hard time controlling his powers. Stepping on the podium, he was greeted by a cloudy scenery. Lifting himself from the ground, he willed himself to float. Once above, he saw goblins riding their wild beasts running full speed in his direction. He encloses himself in an impenetrable bubble as he wipes the goblins with his powers. Willing the ground to open up, everything was swallowed by it in just a minute. All his enemies now twelve feet under, most probably dead, he is cleared from the evaluation.

All of them are surprised by Winwin's ability. In just three minutes, he managed to finish his evaluation. Among them, he is the fastest so far. Taeyong compliments him for his ability to which Winwin shies away. Yuta is the first to approach him when he steps outside the podium and congratulates him which makes the younger flustered. Kun teases Winwin for it which causes him to blush even harder. Finding it adorable, Yuta pinches his cheek lightly which earns more teasing from everyone.

Kun, Jungwoo, Taeil and Xiaojun are called next. Confused, they step forward. They have never worked together before and they work in different fields. To them, it didn't make sense why they were grouped all together. If they had questions, they didn't voice it out. They stepped inside the podium and was greeted by trolls. Trolls were tall and had big bodies. They weren't giants but they were bigger than usual humans. Hiding behind a rock, they discuss what they could do to defeat them. Xiaojun takes notices of something covered in tarp. He gestures to and they walk slowly to its direction. Hiding under the tarp, they discover a broken down fighter jet. They all look at each other in understanding. 

Jungwoo works on the engine while Xiaojun works on the weapons on board of the jet. With Taeil helping him, Xiaojun is amazed at how the older can add chemical coatings which he hasn't heard of before to the bullets in order to kill trolls. While Kun assists Jungwoo, everything is fixed no time. Riding the jet, Xiaojun tells Jungwoo and Taeil how to shoot. Aim, shoot, reload, repeat. Understanding the mechanism, the four of them were up in the air with Kun flying the jet. Shooting left and right from above and Kun firing missiles at the trolls, dozens of them laid dead on the ground in just a few minutes. Once they see that all of the trolls are dead, they descend and are cleared from the valuations.

The last ones that were called were Jaemin, Jisung, Lucas and Yangyang. A double ability wielder, a whisperer, a tech hack and a cryptologist. An interesting group of people. If they found it odd, they said none of it. Quietly stepping up the podium, they are greeted by a scenery in a base camp. Soldiers ran around as an alien flagship hovered from the sky. They recognized the scenery to be simillar as one of the movies from another universe called Independence Day. With Lucas and Yangyang leading the operation, Lucas punctures through the system of their enemy as Yangyang transcribes it. Jaemin rode a plane and extending his ability to the plane, he made it invisble. It required a great deal of his energy so it was only for a quick moment and with their bond, Jisung sees through Jaemin's eyes.

With impeccable fighting strategy, they take the flagship down in no time; killing and destroying everything on board. The four of them hugs each other and shouts in glee. Once the scenery is gone, they're greeted by their friends. Compliments are thrown as well as hugs and their words of congratulations. Watching silently from above, Taeyong and Doyoung smiles. It makes their mind at ease that they weren't wrong in picking these people. It is truly one of the best decisions they have done in their lives.

Johnny wasn't up for evaluations for he was an elocutionist. He was trained for public speaking not for battle. Hendery was a socialite. He was the person who were sent all across the world when it came to activities for Vision. Ten, was a seer. Since it was morning, his visions would not be accurate. Jaehyun, was a trained interrogator. He was trained to ask people questions in any way as long as he gets an answer. It wasn't something you could evaluate but the man was as experienced as the day he was born. Mark, is an Ace of Trade. Like Hendery, he handles transactions for his division. Haechan, is a trickster. A manipulator if you will. He's the best at mind games and they would rather not see that. Last time they did, no one could sleep for months. Including the governor.

After their evaluations, they were taken to where they were staying. Some roomed together, while others roomed alone. They never really realized how big Neo Zone was. It had one floor but the space was massive. Their rooms were big enough to have two full double beds, a bathroom with a tub, a television and a walk- in-closet. The single rooms had a king sized bed, a bathroom with a tub and a double-doored walk-in-closet. It was the best accommodation they have ever seen. There was also a big refrigerator filled with food and drinks and a cupboard loaded with snacks. To them, it was heaven. (Especially for the Dreamers).

Retreating to their assigned rooms, some went to rest whilst some talked. Jisung was going to the infirmary to see Chenle. Bumping into Kun on his way, the older volunteered to come with him. Saying something about wanting to get closer to the younger. Taking their time to walk, they conversed silently.

"So how long have you known each other?" Kun asks. Jisung looks at him and smiles a little, as if reminiscing his days with Chenle.

"We met when I was 5. I was playing in the park near the tower when my ball got stuck on the hoop of the board. He threw his ball on it to get it down. We became friends ever since. It was funny how we were both picked to be part of the Dreamers", Jisung chuckles.

Kun found it amazing how their friendship started and how they were both picked to be a Dreamer. It was as if fate wanted them together. But he couldn't help but notice how when they came down, they were holding each other's hands intertwined. Jisung says their friends, but the look in his eyes that Kun noticed says otherwise. As they rounded the corner, Kun asks a question.

"Friends, huh? Only friends?"

Jisung looks at him before stuttering a reply,"I me-mean we're best friends".

Noticing the stutter, he decides to probe further, "The twinkle in your eyes says something else though. Not to mention you were holding hands when you came in".

Blushing, Jisung answers, "I-I mean, he was really nervous c-cause he though you guys would bully him, you know? I just wanted to comfort him".

Deciding to not let it go, Kun only hums as an answer. Their foot padded through the halls on their way and once they reached the door to the infirmary, JIsung sighs before exclaiming in a hushed voice, "Alright fine! I like Chenle but I know he doesn't see me that way. So, please don't say anything. I'd rather be his best friend that nothing at all". Kun is surprised by the sudden confession but his heart aches a little at the last bit of Jisung's words. It was a sad situation, but they were still young. Maybe they'd figure it out when they're a little bit older. Turning the knob, Kun opens the door and they went inside. The nurse rises from her seat seeing the two of them.

"He woke up a minute ago. I was about to call the governor", she said.

"It's okay. I'll take them", Kun says to which the nurse nodded.

Moving the curtain, they saw Chenle laying on the bed staring at the ceiling. Noticing their presence, he looks at them and smiles once he sees Jisung. Kun notices the way Chenle's red tinged eyes suddenly brightening upon seeing Jisung. 

_'Yeah they'll figure it out when they're older', he thought._

"Hey Ji", Chenle greets, sitting up.

"Yeah don't mind me. I'll just stand here", Kun says, laughing at himself.

"Oh hi Kun hyung", Chenle greets him too with his pale face suddenly flushing pink matching his red hair.

"Hi Chenle", he greets back teasingly.

"Do you feel better Lele?" asks Jisung which Chenle responds with a nod and a smile. Both of them converse animatedly at each other. Jisung fills in Chenle on what happened with Kun inserting in phrases in between Jisung's stories. They all talk and laugh with each other as they get Chenle discharged and on the way to their rooms. As they were on their way, angry shouts could be heard from the hallway. Curious as to what was happening, they fasten their walking to see Johnny and Ten having a heated argument. Jisung and Chenle walks away, feeling that it was not their business.

"I said I was sorry Ten! There was nothing I could do! What else do you want from me?!" Johnny screams at Ten. 

Ten's eyes are red from holding back his tears when he says, "Nothing? There was something Johnny! You could've told me you were leaving but no! You'd rather leave not saying a fucking word and disappear from my life!"

"What's going on?" hearing the yells from his room, Doyoung comes out to see Johnny red in the face and Ten's tear-stricken one. Hearing Johnny's voice, Jaehyun comes out of his room as well.

"Oh I'm sorry? You'd rather have me say that I was leaving? You wanted me to tell you _'hey Ten I'm going to 127 because the governor picked me to be a leader and an Ace. I don't know if I can see you anymore?'_ was that what you wanted to fucking hear?" Johnny yells at him sarcastically.

Ten stared at him in disbelief.

"Yes! What the fuck is wrong with you?! Was that fucking hard?! I'd rather you tell me you were going away. I'd rather you tell me you're not sure if you could see me anymore. Because then I wouldn't have to question myself if I did something wrong for you to leave me! I wouldn't have to ask myself if I ever hurt you for you to just disappear from my life. If I was enough for you, if you didn't love me anymore. That was fucking traumatic Johnny! To the extent that I didn't want to go out alone! It fucking hurts that every time I was alone I'd think of you leaving me with no explanations of why!" Ten says in one breath as tears ran down his face. His heart beating loudly in his chest, he turns to leave with the Visionaries following him worriedly.

Johnny is at a loss upon hearing Ten's words. He never really thought much of their history. He always pushed it away at the back of his mind. The damage had been done but he didn't know it would be that much. All he knew was that he couldn't see Ten for the last time and say he was leaving him. That thought broke him, but it broke him more now knowing that he had caused a great deal of destruction in Ten's life. Defeated and utterly distraught, Johnny retreats to his room.

"Talk to your friend Jung. He needs it", Doyoung says icily. As he turns to leave for his room too, Jaehyun catches his wrist. Looking over his shoulder, Doyoung faces Jaehyun.

"What do you want?" he asks as he removes Jaehyun's hold on his wrist.

"Could we talk?" Jaehyun asks, his tone hopeful.

Doyoung raises an eyebrow at Jaehyun before saying, "I don't think we have something to talk about Jung".

"Doie-"

"Don't. Don't call me that", Doyoung cuts him off.

Jaehyun sighs in defeat.

"Doyoung, us. I want us to be alright".

"Look, there's no 'us'. We ended that. _I_ ended that", Doyoung replies.

"I know. Making you choose between your duty and me was not right. I know that now. I still love you Doyoung. I want us to try again", Jaehyun sighs as he looks at Doyoung straight in the eye, looking for something, _anything_ that could tell him that the older felt the same. He saw a glimmer in Doyoung's eyes but it was gone as soon as he saw it that he was convinced he had imagined it.

"Then you learned Jae. I think that's enough. And I'll repeat what I told you then. Serving the governor, working by his side, is not a duty. It's what I live for and have honor for. I would never give it up for anything or anyone".

Jaehyun could feel tears well up in his eyes as Doyoung's words pierce through his heart slowly like shards of glass breaking through. Their love was never the selfish type. They both grew because of their love. They helped each other be the strong person they are today but sometimes, you'll yearn for your partner's love to be only for yourself and kept it from the world. It was something Jaehyun wanted then that Doyoung couldn't give him.

Doyoung turns and walk away just as Jaehyun's words echo through the room.

"Not even for me?"

Doyoung stops mid-walk. His chest tightens, knees grows weak and throat run dry but he wills himself to be strong before replying.

"Not even for you".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello! I appreciate all the support you have given this fic. the comments really motivate me so if you're too shy to comment, here's my [cc](https://curiouscat.me/mezzyderdrea)


	5. End To Start

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "That's the awful thing about betrayal; it doesn't come from your enemy"

The commotion in the afternoon caused some tension for all of them. The Aces seemed to be walking on eggshells around the Visionaries as they glared at them every chance they get. The Dreamers however, couldn't fathom the awkwardness and tension between their seniors that every time they'd see them, they go running the other way. They did everything to avoid them just to avoid the unwanted tension. Jaemin was going to get coffee in the kitchen before doing some evening training when he spotted Johnny sitting a few inches away from Kun who was already giving him the side eye while he was cooking. Stopping midway, he quickly turned around only to bump into Taeyong.

"Woah there. You alright?" Taeyong holds Jaemin's shoulders to steady him.

"Sorry sir. Yes I'm alright", Jaemin replies while he hurries to turn and go the other way. Eyebrows furrowed in confusion, Taeyong shrugs the younger's weird behavior and continues to be on his way. 

The tension didn't come unnoticed by Taeyong once he steps into the kitchen but he decided to let it be for he finds it not his business. Grabbing a cup, he sets it under the coffee maker and waits for his coffee to brew. While waiting, he turned to talk to Kun.

"How are you finding Neo Zone so far?" he asks.

With a straight face, Kun answers, "Good sir".

"That's great. If there is anything you'd like to change or arranged you can freely come to me or Doyoung. We'd be happy to do them as long as it isn't too much".

At Taeyong's reply, Kun stops for a moment and turns the stove off. Facing Taeyong, he says, "Well there is something".

Sipping his freshly brewed coffee, Taeyong replies, "Sure. What is it?"

"I'm pulling the Visionaries out of Division U".

"What?!" Johnny suddenly exclaims, standing up. Kun and Taeyong turn to look at him. Taeyong is perplexed at Johnny's sudden reaction while Kun glares at him.

"What do you mean pull out? You're leaving?" Johnny asks.

Kun scoffs upon hearing Johnny's question as he rolls his eyes in irritation before responding bitterly, "I believe that's none of your concern".

"May I ask why?" Taeyong asks carefully, interrupting Johnny whose about to open his mouth.

"You do know that we're preparing for something, right?" he adds.

"Yes sir, I know. But the well-being of my members will always come first. We'll still be fighting alongside you when the time comes but we can't stay here if that means sacrificing one of my member's peace and well-being".

Silence preceded Kun's statement before Taeyong finally said something.

"I understand. If it is best for your members then you may leave. All I will be asking for you is to fight with us when the time comes. I promise to double the support the council is giving you in Vision for your training and preparation", Taeyong says, sighing.

"Taeyong! You can't decide that all so sudden!" Johnny says, shocked at his decision.

"Thank you sir, for understanding. I will tell my members now and I'm sorry", Kun says bowing politely at him, completely ignoring Johnny's statement.

"No. Thank you for warning us. I wish the Visionaries all the best".

Bowing one last time, Kun exits the kitchen. The dish he was cooking, long forgotten. Johnny, on the other hand, is still in shock.

"Taeyong what the fuck was that? You can't just let them walk out!" Johnny exclaims, exasperatedly once he recovers from his shock.

"I can if they are on reasonable grounds and they are so let it go", Taeyong replies, calmly.

At a loss for words, Johnny stays silent. With the both of them not talking, the only sound that could be heard was Taeyong sipping his coffee and the hum of the air conditioning. Putting down his cup of coffee, Taeyong finally decides to say something.

"You know they're going because of you, right?"

"I know"

"Then why aren't you doing anything?"

Johnny looks at Taeyong, confused who only looks at him questioningly.

"What?" Johnny says.

"You love Ten, don't you? So why aren't you doing anything?"

Sighing, Johnny answers, "I love him but I also know it's too late".

Chuckling lowly, Taeyong replies, "It isn't. It's never too late. I may not know everything that happened with you two but I think I know enough. I know you love him and I know you didn't want to hurt him by saying you were leaving but leaving without saying anything was worse. You suck at communication but I think you'd want to talk to him before they do leave".

"I don't know what to do Yong", Johnny says, his shoulders slumped and a defeated look on his face.

Taeyong smiles gently at him before saying, "Yes you do. You're just afraid and nothing's wrong with that. But do you really want to live on knowing you caused the love of your life so much pain, seeing you could at least ease a bit of it by talking and apologizing? You can't go back and change what you did but what matters is that, you know what you did wrong and you're willing to correct them".

Johnny looks at Taeyong, searching his eyes, all he sees is understanding. He mulls it over his head before admitting to himself that Taeyong was right.

"What if I hurt him even more? What if I completely destroy him? I don't think I can live knowing I broke him Yong", his voice breaking, Johnny holds back his tears.

"And what if he's just waiting for you to explain? Look Johnny, and I mean this in the nicest way. You've already hurt him so much, the least you could do is give him an explanation. It won't change anything but it'll give the both of you some peace", Taeyong replies.

"You know what? You're right", Johnny says, straightening his back, a determined look in his eyes.

"Damn straight".

"It doesn't matter if he forgives me. He deserves an explanation and peace of mind. Thanks Yong", Johnny beams at him.

"Who knew you could give decent love advise", he adds.

"Hey I give good advice", Taeyong replies offended.

"Mhm maybe take your own advice", Johnny smiles at him cheekily.

"What?"

"You know, confess your undying love for the moon", Johnny winks before leaving Taeyong. Confused, Taeyong tries to think of what Johnny meant. Mumbling to himself, it's only when a few minutes had passed when he realized what he meant. His cheeks flushed and ears red, he curses Johnny under his breath.

"Oh fuck you Suh".

"Yeah fuck Johnny".

A voice suddenly said making Taeyong jump in surprise. Turning around, he is met with Taeil's smiling face. If his cheeks were flushed before, they were burning now.

"Taeil! What are you doing here?" Taeyong asks in a high pitched voice.

"Getting something to eat", Taeil replies before walking over to the cupboard.

Taeyong watches him as discreetly as he could but Taeil could definitely feel his gaze on him. 

"So why were you cursing Johnny?" Taeil asks, taking a seat on the counter nd munched over a bag of chips.

"Oh you know, just Johnny being however he usually is", chuckling nervously to himself, Taeyong looks around to keep himself pre occupied.

Taeil hums as a response.

"H-how much did you hear?" Taeyong scolds at himself verbally for stuttering at the first word before looking at Taeil who seems to be too busy eating to notice his stutter.

"I came in as Johnny left. Why do you ask?"

"No reason".

Taeil stopped mid chew when he saw how red Taeyong's face was. Concerned, he asks. 

"Why are you so red?"

"Oh me? Pft no. It's just hot" replies Taeyong with a nervous laugh.

"Should I turn up the air conditioning at this place? It's just right for me though".

Taeil grows more concerned when Taeyong doesn't respond. Confused at the way the younger was acting, he approaches him. Hearing movement, Taeyong lifts his head up to see Taeil coming his way. 

"Hey are you alright?"

"Totally. I'm gonna go. You know, lots of things to do. Uh bye".

Taeyong doesn't let him say a word before dashing out of the kitchen leaving a very confused Taeil.

  
  


🌒 

Mark and Jeno were by the sparring grounds when Haechan suddenly bursted in with Jaemin hot on his tail. While Haechan had a smile on his face, Jaemin had a terrified look on his. Mark and Jeno were confused by the sudden appearance of the two.

"Mark Lee, we need to talk", Haechan says as he approaches the two.

Still confused, he replies, "Uh sure. What about?"

"What is this all about?" Jeno whispers to Jaemin who replies in the same hushed voice, "I don't know what's gotten into him. He said something about a way to make Mark like him".

The couple looked at each other upon realizing what Haechan was about to do.

"About you".

"Me? What about me?" Mark gestures at himself, growing even more confused.

"You listen, I talk. Got that? You don't speak until I'm done alright?"

"Oh boy. This is not gonna end well", mumbles Jeno as a confused Mark nods.

"Okay. Mark Lee, I like you. I liked you ever since we were picked to be an Ace. I've liked you for your clumsy ass, for your cute laugh and your horrible sense of humor and I'm not saying you should like me too because gosh we both know you don't look at me like that. I just want you to know how I feel. Okay now you can talk", Haechan says, not losing his smile.

Mark stands in front of him, a dumb look on his face while Jaemin and Jeno collectively shook their heads.

"Hyuck, I don't know what to say. Um, thank you?"

Haechan laughs at his response before saying, "God you really are horrible but I guess that makes you more attractive. Don't worry Mark, you don't have to treat me differently. I'm still your bestfriend".

"Anyways, that's it. You can resume to whatever you guys were doing. Let's go Jaeminie", Haechan adds as he gestures for Jaemin to follow him. 

Blowing a kiss in Jeno's direction who gives him the finger as a response, the both of them walks out leaving a flushed yet confused Mark and an amused Jeno.  
  


Yuta has been standing outside Winwin's door for about five minutes now. Contemplating if he should knock or not. In his head, he's rehearsing how he's gonna talk to Winwin or whoever answer's the door. Taking a few breaths, he raises his fist to knock only for the door to swing open and his fist to come in contact with Winwin's head. Both of them look at each other, startled. Slowly putting his arms down, Yuta smiles at Winwin that almost made the younger melt. Winwin has discovered that amidst Yuta's intimidating aura, he was a gentle soul. Maybe Yuta not speaking has added to the reasons why he came off as scary (and the fact that he could totally kill you in your sleep) but other than that, Yuta seemed like a cute person with his smile and all. Smiling back at the older, Winwin closes the door behind him as the both of them come face to face, asking him what brings him to his room.

 _'Well, Renjun is teaching Lucas some basic firing and I was wondering if you wanted to come? You could help me-I mean us with aim and whatever',_ Yuta's holographic message reads.

Winwin chuckles to himself. Being one of the person who engineered Yuta's generator, he understood how it worked. Whatever you wanted to say, the generator flashes it. It's almost like a truth machine. Whatever's on your mind that you intend to say, it would project it. So the only way to shield away your unwanted thoughts swimming in your head that you ought to say, is to turn it off.

"Sure. I was about to go train anyway".

Yuta's smile widens despite his attempt to hide it. The both of them walk to the training room in a comfortable silence. Once there, they see Lucas wearing safety goggles and some ear noise canceler. A gun held in both his hands drawn forward, they watch as Lucas fires two rounds with his eyes closed, his shoulders rolling back from unexpected impact. Lucas first opens one eye, then the other before looking at Renjun expectantly who only makes a disapproving face at him. Yuta and Winwin approaches the both of them.

"Not bad", Winwin remarks.

"I guess, could've been better but I guess that works", Renjun says before shrugging.

Lucas sighs before removing the noise canceler from his ears and turns to look at Yuta.

_'What?'_

"Did I do good? Renjun's a perfectionist", Lucas asks him.

 _'Don't worry. You'll do great after a few more tries',_ Yuta assures him.

"So basically that was bad", Lucas deadpans.

Making a face, Yuta replies, _'pretty much'_

“Don’t worry Lucas. I’m shit at aiming too”, Winwin says, chuckling to himself.

Lucas frowns at Winwin and says,”was that supposed to make me feel better?”

The both of them look at each other before they busted out laughing. Yuta and Renjun looks at each other in question but decided to shrug the weirdness of the two. Once they calmed down, they resumed to talking.

“Okay okay. What do I have to do?” Winwin asks, now serious.

“You can make the targets move in random order so we can practice? Like make it move slowly and then really fast”, Renjun instructs.

Confused, Lucas looks at him before asking, “but the machine does that already”.

“Oh well, he’s already here so might as well make him do it. Besides, that way he can practice his ability too”, winking at Yuta, Renjun replies.

If Yuta’s generator was on, it would be spewing out curse words at Renjun right now.

Yuta gets a gun while Renjun does the same. Winwin prepares to do what he is instructed to. Nodding at each other, Yuta and Renjun faces forward and draws their guns. Winwin lets the targets float. First slowly and gradually becoming faster and faster. As expected, the two assassins doesn’t miss a single shot as the targets are all hit in the center. After all targets are pierced, they put their gun down and faces a dumb stricken Lucas. 

Mouth agape, Lucas looks at them before saying, “that. was. fucking. crazy!”

Renjun chuckles at him while Winwin let the targets return to their places.

“Oh you ain’t seen nothing yet. Hyung can we do long range?” Renjun asks.

 _’As long as Winwin can do it’,_ Yuta says.

“Sure. Just tell me what to do”, Winwin shrugs like what was asked was nothing.

 _’We’re gonna use snipers so we’re gonna go up and then you make the targets move simultaneously’,_ Yuta instructs.

“But it’ll be hard if the targets are moving, right?” Winwin asks.

“We’ll see”, Renjun smirks.

“And Lucas, keep your eyes peeled”.

“What does that mean? My eyes are open”, Lucas asks, confused.

“It means don’t let your mind run wild dumbass”, Winwin muses.

Lucas’ mouth form an o in understanding before nodding. He sat by Winwin as Yuta and Renjun climbs to the second level of the firing grounds. They set up their snipers in place. Once done, Winwin hears a buzz from the system and a red light at the top; indicating they were ready. Lucas watches in complete amazement at how skilled Renjun and Yuta are. Winwin was making the target dummies move so quickly that he can barely make them out but to his absolute surprise, they seem to be dropping on the ground one by one. It whizzes past each other before it lays on the ground. After a few more movements, there were no more dummies left. Another buzz from the system was heard before a green light emitted at the top. Renjun and Yuta went down to where Lucas and Winwin were, smiles on their faces.

"Okay I don't know how that happened but you _have_ to teach me at least how to do some of that", Lucas announces excitedly.

"That was good. You guys are seriously so amazing", Winwin praises which made Yuta flushed.

Renjun nudges Yuta who only glares at him. Yuta smiles at the compliment before saying, _'Thanks'._

"I'll teach you the basics then", Renjun says to an ecstatic Lucas.

Yuta and Winwin sat side by side, watching the two in silence. Feeling like he needed to say something Winwin clears his throat before saying, "So how long have you been an Ace?"

 _'Three years? I'm not really so sure cause I'm not counting',_ Yuta replies.

"Oh that's okay. By the way I'm just curious. I don't mean to offend or anything but why don't you talk?" Winwin asks, nervously.

"You don't have to answer if you're uncomfortable. I was just curious, you know? I'm sorry if I offended you. I didn't mean to. Am I rambling? I am, aren't I? Sorry I'll stop talking now", Winwin rambles out to which Yuta just chuckled. 

Winwin looks at him and mouths another apology.

_'It's fine Winwin. I'm not offended, you're fine. Really. It's not really a secret since the Aces and the governor knows. Well, when I was young, about four or five years old, my father worked for the government. He was one of the Forces of Neo City. When he was away for a service, he found out that my mother was cheating on him. They filed a divorce after he came back. He won custody of me. It was fine for a few months. My mother visited me once a week. We even had dinner each month as a whole. But suddenly, my father started drinking. He would come home almost everyday, drunk off his ass. He would yell, sometimes throw beer bottles around breaking them that I had to clean them in the morning. I remember cutting myself so much the first few times cause I didn't know how to clean them but I got the hang of it after a few more occurrences. It became an everyday thing. One day, he came home sober. I thought he was okay then. He even brought home some snacks. Turns out, he was doing drugs. He put drugs on the snacks. I didn't know so when he saw me eating one, he beat me up. I remember him punching and kicking me, slashing at me with a swiss knife. It was awful, you know? After that, I thought he stopped but then he choked me. He gripped my throat so hard I'm still surprised I didn't die then. I don't know how long he was choking me when men suddenly busted our door open making him drop me. Turns out, the lady next door heard my screams and called for the Forces. I don't remember much after that. I woke up in a hospital and Taeyong's mother was there. They took me to their orphanage and helped me. They said my father choked me so hard that my larynx became so strained, it would be hard for me to talk. They did get me into therapy but after a few months, they said it was impossible for me to get me my voice back so I stopped going. I got into The Academy instead. I trained to be one of the Forces and that's how I was picked to be an Ace'._

Winwin read through Yuta's holographic message in silence. After it disappeared, he looked at Yuta. Searching for any kind of emotion. Maybe hurt, sadness, hate. Just anything but there were none. Yuta's face was blank at his eyes void of any emotions. He couldn't believe he went through that. After much silence, he decided to speak.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that".

Yuta lifts Winwin's face gently before replying, _'don't be. It wasn't your fault'._

 _'And please don't look at me like that. It's fine. I'm fine now',_ he added.

"I don't understand how he could've done that to you", Winwin grumbles.

 _'I guess that's just the way it is',_ Yuta says and looks at Winwin's eyes. His breath hitches as he sees the unshed tears forming and the amount of emotion they held. He felt his chest constrict. It was different when he told the others about his story. Sure, they said how he didn't deserve it, how he shouldn't have to go through that but he saw something in Winwin's eyes. He couldn't find the word to describe it but there was something in them that made him feel something he hasn't felt for years.

''What are you guys doing?"

The both of them break eye contact with Lucas' innocent question. Renjun stares at them alternately, confused.

"What were you guys talking about?" Renjun asks.

"Nothing. Don't worry about it. Lucas do you know how to shoot now?" Winwin decides to ask Lucas a question to divert the attention to him.

Lucas brightens at the question and animatedly converses with Winwin. He shows Winwin what he can do who praises him from the side as he beams at the compliment. Renjun sits beside Yuta who looks at Winwin longingly.

"Mhm I don't think it was nothing", Renjun says.

Yuta snaps his gaze to Renjun before replying, _'what?'_

"You and Winwin hyung. You're looking at him like how Jeno looked at Jaemin's pictures when he went on a hiatus".

A confused Yuta replies, _'I don't get it'._

Renjun sighs. 

"You look at him like you'd give up anything in the world as long as you'll have him". 

Yuta decides not to answer when Kun suddenly entered the firing grounds with a straight face. Both Yuta and Renjun stands up at his presence but Kun pays them no mind. 

"Winwin, Lucas. Let's go", Kun says with so much authority in his voice. 

The two Visionaries stood confused. 

"Where are we going?" Winwin asks. 

"We're going back home after sunset". 

"What? Why?" Lucas asks. 

"No questions. Let's go", Kun says before leaving. 

Winwin and Lucas follows after him, silently saying goodbye to Yuta and Renjun who didn't know what was happening. With the two Visionaries gone, Renjun snaps himself in reality. 

"Why the fuck are they leaving?" 

_'I don't know'._

  
  


🌓 

After Johnny's talk with Taeyong, he was hell bent on talking to Ten. With long strides, he fastens his pace to Ten's room. He isn't exactly sure which was Ten's but he'll figure that out later. All he thought of was how he was going to talk to Ten properly without making the situation worse. On his way, he bumps into Jungwoo. Taking a chance, he asks the younger if he knew where Ten's room was. For an unknown reason, Jungwoo doesand tells him where. Wasting no time, he says a hurried thanks to a confused Jungwoo and sets on his way. He arrives at Ten's door not a moment later. He raises his fist to knock, hesitating for a second, before finally knocking softly. There was no answer for a few minutes so he decided to knock once more. Again, no answer. Feeling anxious, he knock for a third time and this time, he hears movement from the other side of the door. Stepping back and taking a few deep breaths, the door swings open revealing Ten with bloodshot eyes.

Ten's eyes widen seeing the person who had been knocking on his door. Once it registers in his head, he quickly shuts the door only for Johnny to stick his foot to the door before it completely closes.

"What do you want Suh?" Ten asks, his voice muffled.

"I just want to talk", Johnny replies softly.

Ten contemplates if he should give in to Johnny's request but all of that contemplation gets thrown out the window once he hears the desperation on the latter's voice.

"Please".

Ten sighs before widening the gap of the door and gesturing Johnny to come in before completely closing it.

"Okay then. Talk".

"I-I don't really know what to say to be honest. Um okay. Ten, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for hurting you, for leaving you without saying anything back then and I know that what I'm saying right now won't erase the hurt I've caused you. I'm not asking for forgiveness Ten. I won't ever hold it up against you if you won't ever forgive me because I know I've cause you so much pain. All I'm saying is that I was a coward then. I couldn't face you and see the look on your face when I tell you I was leaving. I couldn't do it because I know I would've broke and ask them to pick someone else. And I-"

Johnny's monologue was cut off by a sudden ringing of his phone. Tears streaming down his face, Ten turned away to wipe them while Johnny apologized and turned it off.

"I'm sorry about that. Okay um, I'm just so sorry Ten. I know I fucked up and I want you to know that I love you still-"

Johnny's phone kept ringing but he ignored it to continue talking.

"and I don't care if you don't feel the same way because that's on me. I just think that you deserve peace of mind and I truly hope that by explaining my side of things, you won't be blaming yourself any-"

"I think you should answer your phone first. It might be important", Ten cuts off Johnny.

"No it's okay. I'll answer it later", responds Johnny with his phone ringing nonstop on his pocket.

"Really it's fine. I won't mind", Ten assures him, smiling weakly.

Johnny sighs, not wanting to argue with Ten. Annoyed, he answers his phone with a grunt.

"This better be a a life and death situation or I'm the one putting you in a life and death situation".

Ten watches as the annoyed expression dissolves from Johnny's face, a disbelieving look replacing it. Johnny looks at Ten with horror on his face while Ten looks at him confused. 

"Have you told the governor?" Johnny asks the person in the other line.

As the person answered, Johnny nods to himself before dropping the call. He looks at Ten before saying, "Stay here, alright? Don't go anywhere".

"Why? What's going on?" Ten asks.

"Just stay here alright? I need to see Taeyong. I'm sorry if we can't continue this now but this is just important okay? I'm sorry Ten just stay here okay? stay here", Johnny says to Ten who's still looking at him very much confused as he hurriedly leaves Ten's room to go look for Taeyong.

Amidst Johnny's commands, Ten doesn't listen and follows Johnny without the older realizing it. With quick strides, he tries to keep up with Johnny's long ones. As they rounded the corner, they see Doyoung who seemed to be running to their direction, looking alarmed. Once Doyoung sees Johnny, he visibly relaxes a little.

"Oh thank god. Taeyong's looking for you".

"Where is he?" Johnny asks.

"Neo Zone's system room", Doyoung answers.

"What's going on?" Ten decides to ask which makes the attention of the two turn to him.

"Ten? I thought I told you to stay in your room", Johnny says.

"You did. I didn't listen", Ten shrugs.

"You guys alright now?" Doyoung gestures between them, his expression confused.

"That doesn't matter right now. Let's go", Johnny says before rushing to wherever Neo Zone's system room was. Doyoung and Ten follows Johnny as quick as they could. After a minute of running, they arrive at a very wide glass door. Opening it, the three of them went in to be greeted by a thousand screens with Taeyong right in the middle of it. Hearing the door, Taeyong turns to them.

"Your division is under attack Suh", Taeyong says, his voice sharp.

Ten looks at each of the screen when his eyes lands on one with a label '127' that shows a destroyed building and people running for their lives.

"What happened?" Ten asks.

"Someone planted a bomb in the 127 tower", Doyoung answers.

"How the fuck did that happen? What happened to the security?" Johnny asks, fuming.

"I don't know Suh. It's your fucking division. You tell me why the Forces stationed at your tower were the ones who fucking detonated the bomb", Taeyong answers, his tone bitter.

Johnny couldn't believe his ears. His own Forces, took down their building?

"What?"

"The head of the Forces called for back up. They're now looking for the people who did it", Doyoung says.

"Roll me the tape", Johnny commands.

"What?" Doyoung asks.

"The tape where the Forces planted and detonated it".

Doyoung looks at Taeyong for approval which the older nods. Pressing a few keys, a screen plays a recorded video of the earlier events. All of them watches it with full concentration. There seem to be nothing out of the ordinary other than the fact that their own people are turning against them when Johnny suddenly points out something.

"There"

''What?" Ten asks.

"Roll back and stop when I tell you", Johnny says as Doyoung does as he is told.

The tape is rewound once more before Johnny signals for it to pause which Doyoung does. Pointing to the screen, Johnny says, "their gear. Forces stationed at our division all have the same gears. The communicators on their helmet are not what our Forces use. They’re not our people".

Silence falls upon them before a phone call interrupts it. Answering the call, Taeyong puts the phone on speaker.

"Lee".

_"Sir we have someone looking for a Dreamer"._

"What?" 

_"He's looking for Park Jisung sir. Says he's his father"_

"Take him in for questioning", after that, Taeyong ends the call.

"I thought Jisung's father died?" Doyoung asks.

"He is dead", Tayong answers.

"Then who's looking for Jisung?" Ten asks, not understanding who could it be.

"We're about to find out".


	6. After Midnight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "When the lights are out, the demons come to play"

"What do you mean I can't leave?" Kun asks, frustrated.

After he went looking for Winwin and Lucas, he told them to stay with the others. He was now on a mission to find Ten. It's an hour since he searched every room in Neo Zone but the seer was nowhere to be found. He was getting frustrated so to calm down a bit, he decided to leave Neo Zone and go up the building but to his surprise, men stood by the elevator going up and won't let him through.

"I'm sorry sir but we have direct orders that no one was to leave or enter Neo Zone as of now", the man said.

"I'm just gonna get some fresh air for goodness sake".

"Sorry sir. We're just following orders".

Kun groans in frustration as he glared at the man who he has been talking to. Mumbling curses under his breath, he turns around to retreat to his quarters. He was halfway there when he sees Taeyong, Doyoung, Johnny and Ten from the opposite corridor. Confused, he turns on his heel to approach them. As he walks to them, he notices how Ten and Johnny seemed to have no tension between them making him grow even more confused. 

"What's going on?" he asks.

"Something happened at 127. I'm sorry Kun but I'm withdrawing your permission to go back to your division", Taeyong says.

Hearing Taeyong's words, Ten whips his head to Kun to ask, "We were leaving?"

"What happened in 127?" asked Kun, ignoring Ten's question.

"Our division was bombed", says Johnny, fuming.

"So for your safety, I ask of you to stay here", Taeyong glances at Kun.

"I understand".

"Thank you".

A smile on his face, Taeyong turns to Doyoung while Johnny stood silently by himself, brooding.

"Have everyone gathered in the I.O.U. while I make some calls. I'll meet you there", says Taeyong to Doyoung which surprises the advisor.

"Sir we ha-"

"I know. Follow my orders as of this moments Kim. You can question them later", so much authority oozed from Taeyong's voice that Doyoung straightened up. 

As Taeyong walks away, Doyoung turned to the other three who stared at him.

"What's an I.O.U.?" asked Johnny.

"The Aces has been using Neo Zone since our recruitment but we've never heard of an I.O.U." he adds.

"That's because nobody knows about it except for the governor and me. I.O.U stands for Internal Obsolete Unit. It's only used for extremely confidential meetings and all that. We haven't used it since all of your recruitment. I've already sent out alarms and directions for your members. They'll be meeting us there. Let's go", says Doyoung.

With no further questions asked, the four of them walked quietly. While walking, they couldn't help but notice the armed men standing a meter apart from each other. As they go deeper and deeper to the corridor they were walking, they noticed a metal door perfectly camouflaged with the wall. It was only noticeable if you were at least at arms length with it. In Ten's head, he couldn't help but admire the designer of the whole tower. They must've been amazing to come up with such things. Doyoung pushes the door open and ushered them inside. They were met with a spacious room with a big round table at the center surrounded by chairs.

"Just sit wherever", Doyoung says to them.

The three of them sat by each other. Silence engulfed the whole room for no one dared to speak. Suddenly, a door to the right opened and in walked Jaehyun, a whole confused expression on his face. He glances at Doyoung sat by the other sidee who doesn't pay him any attention so he approaches Johnny. Sitting by him, he asks him what was going on.

"127 was bombed Jae", Johnny replies softly.

Jaehyun doesn't respond for a while, his mind running with bad thoughts. Once he regains his composure the first thing he says is, "Sungchan? What happened to Sungchan?"

Johnny matches Jaehyun's worried expression with his shocked one.

"I-I forgot Jae. I still don't know the whole bit. Taeyong already sent some people over. I'm sure he's fine", Johnny tries to assure Jaehyun as much as he could but he was worried as well.

Jaehyun tried to not let himself think of it much. They all sat silently as they waited for the others to come. As minutes passed, one by one entered the room. Hushed chatter broke out once everyone was complete. Everybody sat by their group of people. While everybody conversed with each other, Ten found it as a good opportunity to ask Kun.

"Kun, what did Taeyong mean when he said he was withdrawing his permission?"

"I figured you would feel more at ease if we were back home. I didn't want you to be mindful about yourself, you know? I was worried you'd go back to your shell again", Kun replies.

Kun's words warmed Ten's heart. It reminded him of when they all first met. He was shy and didn't talk much unless addressed, he didn't go out at all, he had Yangyang always by his side. It was weird for them but they never really questioned it for they thought it was still too early to ask each other such personal questions. As months passed, little by little, they got Ten to open up to them. They were able to joke with him and have fun together without being wary of each other. Sure he still didn't like being alone especially when they're going places but they just shrugged it off thinking that maybe that's just the way he was. Now that they know why, Kun couldn't help but be protective of Ten. That's why he had wanted them to go back to Vision.

"We care for you, you know? I know we always say shit to each other but I know we care for each other deeply", Kun says to Ten.

Ten couldn't help but smile at Kun's words. It was truly amazing how they were all put together as a team. They complimented each other's dynamics like perfect clockwork. Kun was like their responsible big brother, Ten the reserved playful older brother, Winwin their cute brother that can be intimidating when needed be, Lucas the overly hyper and moodmaker brother, Xiaojun the one who always gets teased, Hendery the sophisticated and elegant at first glance but actually the biggest crackhead and then there's Yangyang; their baby. The Visionaries were a family as the others are as well.

Mark enters the room together with Jeno as Jaemin waved them over to where the rest of the Dreamers were. As they approached them, Mark's gaze is drawn to Haechan who seemed to be talking with Chenle and Jisung. He still didn't know what to make up with the younger's confession. It was all so sudden. With the way Haechan had acted in the past, he thought that he was just like Jaemin. Haechan had always been the type to initiate any types of affection whether it be hugs, hand holding or kisses to the point that it would annoy you. That's why Jaemin and Haechan often bonded together, they understood each other. He didn't think that he had been taking an extra room in Haechan's heart. All this time he thought the younger just liked pissing him off.

Jeno nudges Mark which makes the older snap out of his thoughts just to find Haechan looking at him with his big eyes shining before smiling in his direction while he rapidly blinked before slowly looking away. He clears his throat as if to get a grasp of his reality. He straightens up just in time for Taeyong to walk into the room. The hushed chatter dies down once Taeyong stands at the opposite side of the table, his whole demeanor different. His stance screamed power it reminded Mark of when he first met him. Everybody turned their attention to the governor.

"I'm going straight to the point as to why we're here. 127 was bombed just a few minutes ago. They detonated the bomb on the 127 tower while dressed as our Forces. Several casualties but luckily they were non fatal ones so we're thinking it wasn't meant to kill, just to scare us. We've already sent out people to look for them. Your families are now under our protection. We only have one more thing to think about", Taeyong pauses as he glances at the Dreamers direction who's eyes widen when the attention is turned to them.

"Someone is claiming to be your father Jisung".

Shock and confusion is plastered upon Jisung's face upon the announcement as all heads turns to him.

"But his father died on a car accident a long time ago", Jaemin says, just as equally confused.

"Yes we are well aware. He's being interrogated right now and I made a few calls to Jisung's relative but unfortunately his uncle is away on a trip for the time being so we can't confirm anything yet", Taeyong says.

"Which uncle are we talking about?" Jisung asks.

"Your uncle from Ahga Ville", the governor answers which makes Jisung almost visibly relax.

The younger isn't entirely on good terms with his extended family after his father's passing. They had always blamed him for his father's death which he didn't understand but he knew better than to ask. The only relative he was ever in contact with was his uncle Jinyoung who had always sent him presents on special occassions.

"So what are we going to do now?" asks Jungwoo.

"Well," Taeyong begins before nodding at Doyoung as if to signal him on what to do next which makes the advisor stand.

Doyoung presses a few buttons on his pad before a holographic monitor appears in front of everyone which shows themselves.

"You'll be training according not only to your specializations but on the areas you lack skills on. Everybody is going to be learning the basic of hand-to-hand combat, gun firing, and mind communication. We still don't know what's going to happen on the next few days but we have all divisions on lockdown for safety. Trades are still open but only for a the day. While we're investigating the one who claims to be Jisung's father, you will be training", Doyoung explains.

  
  


🌔 

Jaehyun, Jisung, Taeyong and Doyoung stood behind the one way mirror of the interrogation room. Nerves wracked Jisung's being, Jaehyun stood brooding by his side while the governor and his advisor watched the interrogating process with no emotions detected on their faces. It was almost terrifying for Jisung when he saw the man with chained hands being questioned. He looked awfully alike to his father he almost questioned himself if his father did die all those years ago. From the eyes, the nose, the mouth, the facial structure, the hands, the body and the way the man spoke was so alike Jisung's father. The only thing Jisung didn't understand was why he cant't seem to communicate through their minds like they used to. It was the one thing he had been asking himself so can prove if that man sitting from the opposite room is the person he claims to be.

"The way he answers is like he's telling the truth", Doyoung mumbles under his breath but because of the silence it was heard by everyone.

"That or he's extremely good at pretending to be someone he's not", Jaehyun gives his two cent.

Taeyong watches Jisung carefully on how he's taking everything. The younger seemed to be doing alright except for the obvious nervousness. A loud bang resounded from the other room as the person being questioned abruptly stands up while he punches the metal table startling Jisung. Taeyong lays a comforting hand on Jisung's shoulder as the younger clutches his chest, probably calming his racing heart from the sudden shock.

"What part of I'm looking for my son don't you understand?! I already told you his name! Park Jisung! He's a Dreamer!" Jisung's _'father'_ shouts.

"Your claims don't mean anything here. You're identity died in a car accident seven years ago. So unless your willing to tell us the truth, you're going to face some serious punishments", the interrogator said.

"Look, look, I can prove it alright? I know something that only Jisung and I know. It's something the both us only knows. The night he discovered his ability, he couldn't control it. He was so excited he accidentally let his ability control him that the animals within a twenty meter radius went crazy. It was the night Division U got several complaints of animals running wild for twenty four hours as if they were high on drugs. Only Jisung and I know that. We never told anyone".

Jisung stood perplexed from the opposite room as Jaehyun, Taeyong and Doyoung turns to him, their eyes asking if it was true. Jisung nods carefully.

"So ten years ago, when my father was still governor, when some random animals acted a little bit crazy, that was you?" asks Taeyong.

Jisung once again nods before smiling sheepishly.

"But what if your father told someone without you knowing?" asks Jaehyun which made the three of them turn to him.

"I mean, we can't just take his word for it. Just because he knows that doesn't mean he's your father", he adds.

"But what if he's really my dad?" Jisung says quietly.

Jaehyun's gaze soften at the pain in Jisung's voice. He looks at the younger before saying, "I just want everybody to be safe. We can't believe everything he says for now when we have facts and evidence telling us he isn't who he claims to be".

JIsung understood. OF course he did. He's a smart kid. But seeing the man across the room chained, being questioned just sparked something in him. Yearning. He missed having a parent. His mother died when he was born so it was always him and his father. They had an unbreakable bond that it took almost everything in him to not break when his father had died. It was the worst feeling in the world but he held strong and now that someone is claiming to be his father, alive and well, looks and speaks like him, he can't help but believe.

Doyoung's phone buzzes before stepping outside the room. After a few moments, he comes back holding a brown envelope and taps Taeyong before whispering something in his ear. Jaehyun brushes off the burning feeling on his chest before staring straight. Taeyong nods before turning to the two.

"The DNA test came back positive".

Jisung's eyes lit up at the news while Jaehyun glares at Doyoung's hand on Taeyong's shoulder before shaking his head and turns to stare at the floor like it was the most interesting thing.

"That means he's my father?" Jisung asks, excitement evident on his voice.

"Yes Ji".

"But the car accident seven yeas ago?" Jaehyun asked, confused.

"We found a body, burnt to a crisp. Even our advanced technology couldn't examine a body almost close to ash but we did find belongings so it was declared that it was Mr. Park", Doyoung says.

"But why didn't Pa go to grandma and grandpa? Why come for me?" Jisung asks in wonder.

"Well I guess that's a question you have to ask him".

Jisung shrugs the doubt screaming at the back of his mind and watches as his father is freed from the chains and out of the room. They too exit the room they were in and on the corridor, they gestured Jisung to go to his father to which the younger smiled widely. Calling his father, JIsung ran up to him and hugged him tightly while his father did the same. Tears leaked from his father's eyes while hugging Jisung closer to him. The three watched in wonder the father and son hugging each other. Jaehyun notices something in Jisung's father but it was gone as soon as he was about to point it out that he shrugged it off, thinking it was a trick of the light.

"I'm here now. Nothing can hurt you. I'm sorry. I missed you my sungie".

Overwhelmed with emotions, Jisung couldn't help but cry too. His grip tightening, he buries his head on his father's chest, muffling his sobs. Taeyong gestures Doyoung and Jaehyun that they should go, leaving the father and son to give them some privacy. Walking away, Taeyong noticed the tension between his advisor and the Ace but dared not to voice it out. If he knows something about Doyoung, it was to not bring up subjects he himself doesn't talk about. Contrary to people's belief of Doyoung's strong personality, the advisor was quite fragile. He displays a bold and strong front to shield away his true personality to people. It was just the way Doyoung was.

"What are we going to do now?" asks Jaehyun once they are at a distance from the father and son.

"We prepare Jung", Doyoung answers coldly.

"Hey can you stop calling me by my last name? My given name is there for a reason", Jaehyun protests.

"What's wrong with your last name? It's your name still", Doyoung responds.

Taeyong's gaze switch between the two.

"Yeah but it's disturbing".

"Well I guess that's a you problem isn't it?"

"What's wrong with you?" Jaehyun's eyebrow furrows.

"Nothing. What's wrong with you?" Doyoung turns the question to him, looking Jaehyun in the eye.

"Nothing".

Silence followed Doyoung and Jaehyun's exchange while they avoid each other's gazes. Taeyong smiles to himself, suppressing his laughter. Doyoung notices Taeyong's action and glares at him which made Taeyong laugh aloud. Jaehyun turns to the governor, concerned.

"Sir are you okay?"

"I-I'm fi-fine", Taeyong responds, calming himself.

"Gosh you guys are hilarious", he adds which makes Jaehyun confused.

Taeyong straightens up when he sees Jisung and his father approaching them. Hands holding each other tightly, Jisung has a small smile on his face despite his pinkish nose and eyes.

"Thank you governor for uniting me with my son", Jisung's father extends his gratitude to Taeyong, bowing.

"Thank you hyung", Jisung says.

"It's no problem. I hope you find your stay here quite comfortable. Doyoung and Jaehyun will lead you to where you'll be staying. Now, if you will excuse, I still have some things to attend to", Taeyong says, bowing before he took his leave missing the glare Doyoung sent his way.

"Stupid Taeyong and his mind", Doyoung mumbles under his breath.

"I'm sorry?" Jisung's father asks.

Doyoung's head snaps upwards at the question before violently shaking his head.

"Nothing nothing. So, let's go?"

Doyoung gestures for them to follow him while Jaehyun giggles silently beside him.

"Good one Kim".

"Oh shut up Jung".

  
  
Everyone gathered for training after their meeting at the I.O.U.. After series of briefings, they were tasked to train each other with the person who had the specialty taking the lead. The first lesson was combat. Seeing that Jeno was the one who specialized in it, he took the lead. Demonstrating the basic moves, the do's and don'ts, and everything they needed in order to land a decent blow on an enemy. Jeno let the others choose their partners just so they feel a little bit more comfortable.

"I'm sure all of you have been in a fist fight, right?" he asks to which some nodded, some shook their heads in disagreement.

"For those who haven't, you must be some angels. Now, make a fist with both your hands. Your thumbs must not be tucked in your fists. You'll break your hand that way. I'm going to teach you only the basic moves. Arms up to your faces. Always protect your face, don't take your enemy out of your sight, never let your guard down even if your opponent is defeated. Keep your mind strong. You're fighting to kill, destroy, win. Hand-to-hand combat isn't always about brute strength, your mind comes to play as well. Find your opponent's weak spot. Strategize your moves and never second guess yourself. There's a difference to being smart and being cautious."

He teaches them the proper way to throw a punch, a jab, a hook. He demonstrates the techniques, the proper breathing in order for not be tired easily. Jeno has been training close combat for as long as he could remember that it became his second nature. Once he's done teaching them the basics, he lets them fight each other objectively while he observes them. He took turns to watching every duo, not missing a single fist being thrown in the air when he notices Hendery. The guy's stance was good. Not exactly the best but it was good for a beginner. Taking notice, Jeno calls him up. 

"Arms up. Your only goal is to hit me", Jeno says.

The others stop their training to watch the two, clearly intrigued to how the fight is going to unfold. Hendery and Jeno circle each other, trying to find an opening when Hendery suddenly drives a punch to the side of Jeno's face to which the younger dodges by ducking down.

"Drive with your elbows, not with your fists", Jeno says before landing a punch in Hendery's side which made the older grunt.

The two of them continues to circle each other, throws punches while the other dodges as everybody watched. Jeno notices something in Hendery; he doesn't exhale when he throws a punch, tiring him out. Seeing this as an opportunity, he swipes Hendery's legs under him catching him off guard, making him fall and groan in pain.

"Exhale lowly with each punch you throw so it doesn't easily tire you out. Here, let me help you", he says before extending his hand to Hendery.

Hendery reaches his hand to Jeno's outstretched one only for Jeno to lift him off the ground and throw him over to his side which earned a groan from Hendery and a wince to the bystanders.

"Remember, your enemy, they're not gonna play fair".

Hendery abruptly gets up halfway and grabs Jeno's legs in an attempt to take him to the ground only for Jeno to grab the back of his head and his neck, twisting Hendery's body and throws him once again on the ground, earning another groan.

"Nice try but I kind of expected that", Jeno says before chuckling and helping Hendery up, for real this time.

  
  
After the combat lessons, they moved on to gun firing lessons. With Renjun and Yuta taking the lead, they started with a briefing just to let the others familiarize with the weapons they were going to use. Since Yuta had trouble talking, Renjun did all of that.

"Before you guys get into shooting, you have to learn the difference between a revolver and a semi-automatic pistol", Renjun says.

Yuta handed him two different guns. Raising the first, he continued on.

"This, is a revolver. Revolvers have a revolving cylinder for holding the ammunition. The ammunition is loaded into the cylinder, then the cylinder swings into the revolver and it is ready to fire. After a bullet is fired, the cylinder rotates and lines up the next cartridge in line with the firing pin. Most revolvers can be fired in a double action mode which is pulling the trigger which rotates the hammer until it falls and fires the cartridge".

Handing the revolver back to Yuta with a nod, Yuta fires the revolver at the shooting targets until ammunitions are no more while the other stood in amazement. Lowering the revolver, Renjun turns to them again and raises the pistol.

"A semi-automatic pistol advances each cartridge into the chamber from the magazine. It then ejects the empty cartridge after it has been fired. The slide on the top of the gun is used to advance the first shell into the chamber, and can be locked in the back position with a button or pin on the side. The removable magazine is removed and loaded separately".

Doing the same thing as before, all of them watch Yuta with the same amazement plastered on their faces.

"Right. Now, everybody get your safety gears, put them on and stand on your positions", Renjun says as the others does as they are told.

Picking up headphone type ear protection, ear plugs and goggles, everybody was now ready for the next set of instructions. Yuta and Renjun guided everybody one at a time just to make sure each one of them was safe. Teaching them the proper handling, the posture, the do's and don'ts and everything they had to know in order for them to effectively use the weapon they were handling. It took a while for the others to get used to the weight and force of using a gun as to some of them were new to the experience but they got the hang of it after much trying. Halfway into the firing lessons, Jisung and Jaehyun joins them. As the both of them arrive at the shooting ranges, all attention is turned to them. Mostly to Jisung. The Dreamers are the first to approach Jisung.

"So was it true? Was he Uncle Minnie?" Chenle asks Jisung.

Chenle and Jisung's family had been close since the two of them became friends. Having nicknames for each other's parents were what they did as a child that it stuck when they grew up. When Jisung's father died, Chenle's family became his as his family didn't want anything to do with him. Well, except Jinyoung who had been the only relative that kept in touch with the whisperer.

Jisung nods at Chenle, his smile growing as the banshee hugs his best friend. The rest of the Dreamers joins the hug while the others watch them fondly. Breaking apart, the Dreamers says they're happy for Jisung. Except for one who seems to be putting on a forced smile on his face with Renjun the only one noticing.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Renjun whispers to Haechan.

"What? Nothing's wrong", Haechan brushes off the question.

"Don't give me that bullshit. I know you Hyuck. What's going on in that head of yours?"

Haechan sighs lightly before answering, "it just doesn't seem right. I'm getting a bad feeling about this".

"Don't think too much about. Let's focus on training and then we'll meet his father later. Then maybe you'll be at ease", Renjun comforts the younger which made Haechan take breath before smiling at him.

"I guess you're right".

"Of course I am".

Haechan rolls his eyes at Renjun as he replies, "Okay Mr. I'm-Always-Right".

Renjun flips him off after that.

"Okay children, now that Jisung's here, maybe we can try mind communication", Taeil interrupts the Dreamers' moment to which the others agrees.

"Since it's with Jisung, do we also have to do it? I mean, we've been doing it since we got together. I think we're fine", Mark says, pertaining to the Dreamers.

"Yeah I think it's alright. Besides, we need a bond before the whole thing works, right?" Jungwoo asks to which the Dreamers nod enthusiastically.

Everybody moved from the shooting ranges to the lounge area of Neo Zone. While everybody got comfortable, Mark couldn't help but look at Haechan. Ever since the younger had confessed to him, Haechan had been occupying his mind. Every little thing that the younger had been doing lately that didn't matter to him, he suddenly couldn't help but notice. Like the way Haechan would crack jokes in the middle of conversation, the way he throws sarcastic remarks just to tease the others, the way his eyes would shine when talking about a something that deeply interested him ,or the way his head would be thrown back a little every time he laughs. It hasn't occurred to Mark that those little things had been there the whole time. It made him admire Haechan all of a sudden. He always thought that Haechan was just a naturally playful person but now that he would think about it, it seemed to him that the younger was the way he was because he wanted the people around him to be comfortable in his presence. 

Now that he thought about it, since Haechan had admitted his feelings for him, nothing much had changed. He didn't know what he was expecting but he surely didn't expect the younger to pay not much attention to him. Since Haechan's confession, the younger had been hanging out with the others. To Mark, it seemed like the younger was avoiding him but he knew it wasn't the case. Haechan could hang around anyone for all he cared but for some unknown reason, it bothered him. It's come to the extent that he thought he might be jealous that Haechan wasn't paying him any mind but that couldn't be. 

Mark snapped out of his thoughts when Johnny suddenly shook him lightly. A questioning gaze upon his face, he looks at Johnny who only gestured for him to focus and he does as he is told. As everybody got ready, Jisung told them what to do. Winwin was the first person to try.

"Alright. So for this to work, we need a bond. Think of a memory you hold dearly. It doesn't matter what. Keep thinking of that memory and close your eyes".

With eyes closed and furrowed eyebrows, Jisung tries to tap into Winwin's mind. The others watch as a few seconds passes and Winwin and Jisung is suddenly floating off the ground in a sitting position. In complete awe, they watch as different colors emit from the both of them, dancing around them. Moments pass, the both of them slowly goes back to the ground and opens their eyes, both shining. A grin plastered on Winwin's face, he suddenly exclaims.

"That. Was. Fucking. Amazing!"

The Dreamers all chuckle at his reaction as Jaemin says, "It was magical, isn't it? That's what happens on the first try at communication. It connects with you and your memory".

Winwin nods enthusiastically, his grin still not faltering.

"Question though. While making the connection, do you access our memories too?" Xiaojun asks.

"Well that depends on you. I'll only be able to access a memory if you want me too. I'm still not developed enough to try and force my way through locked away parts of you. Last time I tried it, I almost died", Jisung says nonchalantly, as if it was nothing.

"You almost died?" Kun asks, shocked written all over his face as well as the others.

"Yeah", shrugs Jisung.

It continued on like that. With the others trying to communicate with Jisung and being amazed of how it works. Since it was their first time, they couldn't help their excitement from showing. One by one, they tried. They exchanged laughter and words of how cool Jisung's ability was. It was Yangyang's turn when the Visionary suddenly had thought of something to ask the Dreamer. So, he did.

"Hey Jisung", he calls him.

"Yeah?"

"I have a question".

"Sure, what is it?" asks Jisung.

Everybody's attention was then turned to them.

"Since your a whisperer, you communicate with both human and animals alike right? So can you also communicate with the people from the afterlife?"

Silence followed Yangyang's question. Deciding to answer, Jisung answers, "Well, I've never really tried but I guess? I don't know".

"Of course you can".

A voice had answered from behind them. Turning to the voices' direction, they saw a man. It was only when Jisung ran up to him that they'd figure out the man was his father.

"Pa!"

Jisung hugged the man who had his arms open, welcoming the younger. Getting out of his father's arms, Jisung faced everybody and introduces his father.

"Everyone, this is my Papa. Park Changmin".

Jisung's father chuckles at the introduction by his son who had a big grin on his face, his chest puffed as if the younger was immensely proud of his father.

"Please, call me Uncle Min or Uncle Minnie as Chenle likes to call me".

Everybody greeted him respectively before Jisung turned to his father.

"I can communicate with the dead?" he asks.

Everybody's curiosity spiked at the father and son.

"Of course. With enough practice of course. I bet you can already see what the others see right? You'll master communication with the dead in no time" Changmin assured him.

"Well then, I guess that's just adds to the reason why someone wants Jisung", Johnny says.

"What?" Jisung's father asks, confusion evident on his face.

"Someone wants your son, sir. We still don't know why that's why we're training; to defend Neo City and of course, your son", Ten says.

"How can you tell? And is that why 127 was bombed?" Changmin continues to ask, worry now etched all across his face.

"I'm a seer, sir. I see the future with the moon's guidance when I pray", Ten explains to him.

"And yes, we think it's the same person who bombed 127 who wants Jisung", Johnny says.

All stood still, tension hung heavy in the air. While others were uncomfortable, Haechan was studying Jisung's father. In the young Dreamer's mind, something was not right but even though he thought of it, he dared not speak of it. He didn't want to upset Jisung.

"Excuse me", someone says from the entrance.

Everybody turns in unison.

"The wants everybody at the dining for dinner", the same person says.

"Well I guess it's time for dinner. Let's go", Taeil claps once and enthusiastically turns to everyone.

The Aces shook their heads with a small smile on their faces at their leader's antics. Following Taeil, everybody took their time going to the dining. A few meters away from the dining, they were hit with the heavenly aroma of food. Their stomachs grumbled at the scent.

"Last ones a rotten egg!" Lucas suddenly exclaims from the group and bolted in the dining's direction.

"Hey! No fair!" Jaemin protests before running after the older with the young ones hot on his tail.

"What a bunch of kids", Renjun shook his head.

"You're the same age as them though, which technically makes you a kid too", says Kun.

Renjun brushes off the remark as everybody kept walking to the dining. Once there, they were greeted by a bunch of food sitting at the table.

"I hope this is enough for all of you", Taeyong says, chuckling.

_'Oh definetly',_ Yuta says.

"You would know Yuta", teased Jungwoo which earns a glare from the older.

"Thank you for this governor", Jisung's father says.

Taeyong only smiles as a response.

"Please, enjoy".

There wasn't much needed to be said before everybody dove in. From the varying dishes, everybody enjoyed the meal. Barely talking, the table was filled with small talks and low laughter. Silverware against the plates resonated through the dining. Everybody seemed to be enjoying. Well, it seemed everyone except for one. Haechan watched Jisung's father full of wonder. Watching his every move, the way he lifts his silverware, the way he ate, the way he moved, the facial features. Everything. Haechan had been staring at him for so long that the person by his side took notice.

"Hey Haechan, you alright?"

Snapping out of his gaze, he turned to Xiaojun.

"Yeah hyung, don't worry", he says and smiled.

Xiaojun returned his smile before continued on eating. Dinner ended without much happening. After an exchange of thanks to the governor and his advisor, everybody returned to their quarters. Some washed up, some went straight to bed and some entertained themselves. One of them who did the last one was Lucas. The Visionary had a habit of playing with technology since young. It was the same reason why he had been picked as a Visionay.

Since it was still early, Lucas messed around his laptop and tried to hack into Neo City tower's system. His gaze fixated on his screen, fingers typing vigorously and keys clacking as well as the light from the screen that illuminated through the empty room was the only thing that mattered to him. Minutes passed before he was able to get into the tower's server. Once in, he played with the controls. Making the elevator go up and down, activate and deactivate the alarms, closing the server so only him had control and giving the control back to system, Lucas has fun. He even made the lights flicker in the other rooms that he could've sworn he heard someone scream bloody murder to which he only laughed lightly.

Turning to his bedside table, he saw it was a little bit past twelve. Closing his laptop, he stretched his fingers and arms. Deciding it was time to go to bed, he kicked his covers over his feet and lied comfortably. Finding a position that would get him to sleep, Lucas turned to his side. With his eyes closed, Lucas tried to surrender to the dream world. Lucas tossed and turned a few more times before finally settling in a position. Minutes passed when he suddenly sat up. He grumbled under his breath in annoyance. He stared forward when he suddenly thought of something.

Standing up, Lucas wore his slippers and went out of his room. He was on his way to the kitchen to get a glass of milk. It always worked when he had trouble sleeping back in Vision so it should also work at U right? He only hoped they had milk. Walking silently through the dark corridor with only his phone's flashlight lighting his way, he heard movement on his left. Peeking to see who it was, he saw someone familiar. His eyebrows knitted together in confusion, he watched silently.

_'Jisung's father? What is he doing there at this time?',_ Lucas thought.

He was about to call for Jisung's father attention to ask him what he was doing when someone had suddenly tapped him at the back and called for his name making him scream in surprise. Shining his phone's light at the person, he saw Jungwoo's unblinking face. Clutching his chest, he said, 

"You almost gave me a hear attack!"

"Me? You're the one standing alone in the dark!" Jungwoo exclaimed.

"I was going to get something but I saw-" Lucas interrupted himself to point at where he saw Jisung's father only to see no one there.

"Where did he go?" he asked himself, confused.

"Who?" Jungwoo asks.

"Uncle Min. He was standing there just a moment ago" Lucas says.

Jungwoo looks at him disbelievingly before saying, "Are you sure you saw Uncle Min? Maybe it was something else".

"Like what?" Lucas asks.

"Like a ghost".

The both of them shared the same silence as they turned to each other, their eyes widening upon meeting. As the two of them ran back to their rooms in fright, they missed the person who watched their exchange from the dark.


	7. Pandora's Box

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "what makes you think you were ever in control of your life? you're not. you're just adapting to the constant changes"

_By the Greeks was a story of chaos. Epimetheus was the brother of the titan Prometheus who went against Zeus' command to not give the humans fire as fire was only for the gods. Enraged, Zeus punished Prometheus to be chained to a rock far away in the Caucasus Mountains where nobody would find him. Everyday, Zeus sent an eagle to feast upon Prometheus’ liver, which grew back every day so that Prometheus would have to endure this torture daily until Heracles found Prometheus and killed the eagle and let Prometheus go._

_The torture wasn't enough for Zeus for he believed that humans should be punished as well; for receiving the fire from Prometheus. To punish man, he created Pandora. A woman molded to have the same beauty as Aphrodite, the goddess herself. She received the gifts of wisdom, generosity, kindness, health and of course, beauty from the gods. Zeus brought her to Earth to be Epimetheus' wife. Amidst his brother's warning not to accept her, the titan was too enamored by her beauty that he married her right away._

_As A wedding present, Zeus gave Pandora a box but warned her never to open it. However, Pandora was created with curiosity and couldn't stay away. Fueled by her curiosity, she opened the box which unleashed all the terrible things in the world; greed, envy, hatred, pain, disease, hunger, poverty, war, and death. As Pandora closes the box tightly, there is something left in the box. Hope._

_If there was one thing the government of Neo City had always advocated, it was to never lose hope. In the words of their governor, "Life isn't hard, the situation is". It has always been the one thing that nctzens had loved about their governor; always there for them, standing up for them, and serving them with his utmost potential. Although he had short comings, they understood for he was human who is capable of making mistakes and that mistakes are what makes him more genuine. It means he's really trying. For good intentions doesn't always mean success, sometimes it results into failure._

_But you can't have everyone love you. There are always people who only like to point out your few number of mistakes rather than the amount of great things you have done and Taeyong understands that. He knows that what matters is that, he is serving his people with everything he can. That alone puts his mind at ease. Though there are always people who will turn their back at you, there are people who will be with you till the end._

_Taeyong stood at the head of the table, holding a wine glass, proposing a toast. As he raises his glass with a smile on his face, he feels wetness upon his back. People collectively gasp around him in shock. He feels the numbness spread from his back to his whole body and before he knows it, he's falling to the ground. He lays motionless on the ground and that's when he feels the pain on his back; someone had stabbed him. Screams of terror echoed in his ears as he closes his eyes and takes his last breath, unable to see the face of his attacker._

  
  
Ten shoots up from his bed, awake and gasping for breath. His heart beating so loudly in his chest he can hear it in his ears. His head turns when he hears a knock to his door. Getting up, he greets the person knocking.

"Johnny? What are you doing here?"

Johnny beams at Ten before replying, "Good morning! Did you rest well?"

Johnny shoves his way in, carrying a bed tray filled with food. Ten didn't have much time to react. Laying the bed tray on Ten's bed, Johnny sits beside it and turns to Ten who still stood by the door.

"What are you still doing there? I brought you breakfast", he says, gesturing to the food he brought.

Ten shakes his head as if he just absorbed what happened and turned to Johnny.

"What are you doing here?" he asks.

Johnny chuckles lightly.

"I told you. I brought breakfast".

Ten contemplates just for a bit, looking at the food and Johnny's smiling face alternatively before slowly sliding into the bed and examining the food in the tray. If Johnny's face was paper, it would be ripped by now with the way he was smiling so widely. Picking up the silverware laid out, he cuts a portion of the waffle and takes a bite. Chewing slowly, he looks at Johnny's still smiling face. He found it weird that the older was there, with a breakfast in bed.

Following events from a day ago, they didn't really come to any closure so it was weird for him how Johnny was acting. Drinking the coffee the breakfast came with, he tries to examine Johnny's face but the older kept smiling it made him confused and a little bit irritated. Ten sets the cup down before he fully turns his attention to the smiling idiot beside him.

"Stop smiling. You look like a lunatic".

Johnny almost looks offended but regains his composure as soon as he loses it and smiles again, only a small one this time.

"Did you have a good night's sleep?" he asks, ignoring Ten's insult.

Ten rolls his eyes before he answered, "It was fine. Sleep was sleep".

Chuckling, Johnny urges him to continue eating which he does. Picking the utensil again, Ten tries to focus on his eating with Johnny's burning gaze upon him. He almost snaps at him for he was feeling uncomfortable under his gaze but Johnny's remark halted his next words.

"That's great. It's good that you don't get nightmares".

Johnny notices Ten's frozen state which makes his face contort in a worried expression.

"Is something wrong? Are you alright?" Johnny asks.

Ten takes a few seconds to respond before he shakes his head and looks at Johnny with an unreadable expression who mirrors it with a confused one.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"I'm going to tell you something but you can't tell anyone" Ten says, a serious look on his face.

Johnny straightens up instantly and mirrors Ten's expression. 

"And I mean you can't tell _anyone_. I don't know when or what it really is so you can't tell".

"I promise I won't tell anyone. Not a single soul. Trust me", Johnny says.

"Okay".

Ten breathes in deeply before looking at Johnny to which the older looks at him with a soft gaze, extending his hand to hold Ten's. The younger flinches slightly even before Johnny's hands make contact with his which makes the older retract his hand abruptly only for Ten to initiate to hold his hand. The two briefly smile at each other before Ten then speaks.

"I dreamt something last night. It was, weird. I'm not really sure if it was a vision or something else. I don't really remember it all but what I do remember is seeing Taeyong. He stood at the head of a table holding a wine glass. He was smiling so widely and there were people on the table but I couldn't see their faces. It was as if everybody in that room had hooded faces except for Taeyong. He raised his glass and suddenly he collapsed. He was stabbed on his back. He died in my dream or vision or whatever it was. I don't know who it was. I woke up just before I could see the attacker".

Silence engulfed the room after that. When Ten started talking, Johnny rubbed small circles on his hand but upon hearing how the governor died on the seer's dream/vision, he stopped. Johnny looks at Ten who had fear in his eyes.

"I'm scared", Ten says quietly after a moment.

"I'm sure it was just a bad dream. Don't think about it too much", Johnny says, smiling a comforting smile to the younger.

"And besides, don't you need to pray to the moon to get an accurate vision?" he adds.

Ten sighs a heavy one before finding it himself to smile back at the older, trying to erase the vivid image of Taeyong's death on his mind. He knew what Johnny was saying was not true but he couldn't admit it to himself that the governor was going to die.

"Yeah. You're right".

The both of them ate the food Johnny brought after that. Johnny declined at first, saying that he brought it for the younger but Ten insisted so he couldn't really say no one more time. The two talked over the most random things over breakfast. They laughed, made jokes, teased each other and reminisced of their days when they were just a normal couple.

"Okay but remember when you came over my house the first time and thought I was cheating on you?" Ten says as he laughed at Johnny's frown.

"Hey in my defense, your sister was extra clingy and sweet", Johnny crosses his arms over his body, a frown still on his face while Ten continues to laugh at him.

"She was trying to break you".

"That's not funny", Johnny complains.

"It was hilarious".

As Ten continued to laugh at Johnny, small tears leaking at the side of his eyes and leaning over Johnny's side, the older couldn't help but look at him. it's been a while since he saw and heard Ten laugh and it's still the same beautiful laugh he remembers. Calming down, Ten noticed Johnny looking at him, an unreadable expression on his face.

"What?"

It took Johnny a while to answer but when he did, it caught Ten off guard.

"Your laugh and smile is still as beautiful as I remember it".

Ten tries to form words to respond but he only came up blank. He felt the whole zoo in his stomach going crazy at Johnny's words.

"Can't we try again?"

And at Johnny's question, he felt his defenses come down.  
  


🌕 

  
  


Everybody gathered at Neo Zone's training grounds after breakfast. It was going to be their routine from now on. Train, rest, train, sleep and again the next day. 127 has been recovering quite fast since the bombing even without Johnny and Jaehyun there. The governor had sent three council people to help with the arrangements there. They were now anticipating an attack on Dream and Vision. Even though they didn't want to think about it, they had to prepare for the worst in order to be ready. With the Divisions in high security, the members were a little bit a ease knowing their families were safe. Well, those who had still at least.

Training for the members had been passing like a blur everyday. Hand-to-hand combat, shooting, mind communication and basic sequences of codes have been where what their heads have been rapped on for the past days. With Jeno leading close combat training, everybody was soaked with sweat every after sessions. They really couldn't complain or Jeno would give them extra drills to practice strength. It was amusing how the older members were obedient of Jeno despite the age gap. It just shows how much respect they have for each other and their fields of work.

Jisung and Winwin led mind communications. They have been trying a new tactic. Mind communication through another medium, trying to see if Winwin's telekinesis can be through Jisung's ability. So far, they had been able to do little things like lifting smaller objects. It was just to that extent. Trying it on a bigger scale gives Jisung a headache and they didn't want to sacrifice the younger just to prove something. Everybody had been getting close quite quickly. Talking and hanging out as if they'd bonded longer the time they had actually known each other.

Firing lessons had been quite the spectacle every time they train. They really didn't know what it was, but something about Yuta and Renjun's skill had them in awe even if they were just demonstrating proper handling, how to stand, how to shoot. It was all new. Even with the Dreamers and Aces, it was all new. Maybe because when the Aces were assigned assignments, they all did their own thing and it's their first time fully watching Yuta in his element that they felt astonished with his skill. With Renjun, it was always just Mark watching so with all the Dreamers watching, they were collectively shocked with the assassin's skill. The Visionaries were a similar case. Well, Lucas was a little bit more excited than everyone that Renjun almost found it annoying although at the back of his mind, it made him feel good and smile at how Lucas was always beaming at him.

Codes was a new part of their training. Taeyong had them learn the basics just in case they needed to communicate secretly and if they ever come across one and Yangyang isn't available to translate it for them. Yangyang and Haechan led that part of the training. Haechan was exceptionally smart. Always learning twice faster than anyone, it made Yangyang and him form a bond. Since they were only learning the basics, Haechan was able to master all of them despite the others still mixing the sequences from time to time. Because of this, Haechan asked Yangyang to teach him some of the hard ones and unsurprisingly, he learned them with ease. It made Yangyang happy that he had someone to talk codes with. Except for one; Mark.

Haechan had been hanging out more frequently with Yangyang than the others. Sure the Dreamers stuck to each other during training but when training was done, Haechan always gravitated towards Yangyang. The Dreamers didn't seem to mind. To them, Haechan was a naturally social person. Always had been making friends left and right so it was confusing as to why Mark had came to them one evening after training, saying that Haechan had been avoiding him.

"Avoiding you? Why would Haechan hyung avoid you?" asked Chenle.

"Did you two fight or something?" Jaemin asks, running his fingers through Jeno's hair who had his head in his lap.

"What? No. It's just, I barely see him anymore you know?" Mark says, frustration evident on his voice and face.

Renjun scoffs at that which makes the Dreamers turn to him.

" _You barely see him?_ Mark we train everyday, that means you see each other _everyday_. Besides, you can't expect him to always be with you or us, right? He's a social butterfly" says Renjun.

"Not to mention you guys are roommates. The first and last person you literally see everyday is each other", adds Jeno.

"Well if you put it like that, it makes me feel like I'm being clingy", Mark says, almost embarrassed.

Chenle chuckles at that.

"What if you are hyung?"

Mark looks at Chenle disbelievingly who only stared at him more. 

_'You're starting to like him hyung'_

Mark whips his head in Jisung's direction beside Renjun when he hears his voice in his head.

_'That's bullcrap. Haechan's my best friend, my right hand man. I never saw him that way' _, he says back.__

Jisung stares at him, his face void of any emotion while the others stared at Mark and Jisung back and forth. 

_'Well what if you never thought that way but clearly Haechan hyung being friendly with others has you thinking he's avoiding you when in fact he's just being his sociable self?'_

"Uh hello? Mind sharing your conversation with us? We're here too", Jaemin says, snapping the Mark and Jisung from the conversation in their heads.

"Haechan hyung has always been the first one to make friends out of all of us. He's naturally friendly and nobody ever had a problem with that, especially Mark hyung. In fact, he's been the first to always assure us that Haechan hyung's a sociable person and not avoiding us. So what's so different now?" Jisung says.

The Dreamers all ponder at Jisung's words for a moment before Jaemin suddenly said something that sparked their interest.

"Well Hyuck has been hanging out with everyone but he's been extra close with Yangyang".

Everyone turns to Jaemin at his statement only for him to stare at them cluelessly.

"What?"

"Babe, you're mind", Jeno says.

"What? You think Mark's jealous of Hyuck hanging around Yangyang?" Jaemin asks.

Nobody talked for a moment until Mark responded in a voice a pitch higher than usual, "Of course not!"

"You hesitated", Chenle says.

"N-no I didn't" Mark tries to defend himself.

Renjun smiled a small devilish smile at Mark before saying, "you stuttered".

Mark's face burned with embarrassment at their accusations as he tries to get out of the situation he himself had put himself in.

"I- Look, I'm just saying, after his confession he hasn't been paying much attention".

"Oh so you _are_ jealous. You want him to do something", Jisung says, excitement sparkling in his eyes.

"You know what? This talk is over. I'm going to my room and sleep", says Mark as he stood up from his seating position on Jeno's bed, leaving the room just as Chenle said, "you can't escape us or your feelings hyung!".

Mark shook his head in an attempt to clear his head but it just made him dizzy. Walking back to his and Haechan's room, he took his time. Maybe the Dreamers were right. Though he'll never admit it to anyone or himself, he was jealous of the attention Haechan was showering the others but him. He just didn't understand nor did he know what he was expecting after the confession but he certainly didn't think the younger to pay him not much attention. 

Arriving at their door, he heard voices from outside which made him confused. Nobody should be inside the room except for Haechan especially knowing it was a bit late already since they finished training at nine pm. Opening the door slowly, he went inside their room. Inside, he sees Haechan and Lucas on the younger's bed talking and laughing with a laptop illuminating their faces and a lamp lit on the side.

Hearing the door, both of them turned to Mark who had entered.

"Oh Mark, turning in for the night?" asked Lucas with his usual smiling face.

Mark smiled back politely as he replies, "Yeah".

Mark turned the other way from then, heading to the bathroom. Maybe it was the conversation with the others a while ago but while taking a shower, he almost felt, bitter? He didn't know what it was really but seeing Lucas and Haechan together awakened something in him. He didn't want to say it out loud, afraid how real it was but he couldn't really escape it. Drying himself and slipping in some more comfortable clothes, he goes out of the bathroom, drying his hair only to notice that it was only Haechan in the room. Lucas gone.

"Where's Lucas?" he asks, his tone bitter being unable to control it.

"Oh he left after you went in the shower. You alright?" Haechan asks and maybe it was just his imagination that the younger sounded worried.

"Yeah why wouldn't I be?" he answers as nonchalantly as he could.

"Hmm nevermind. Good night Mark", Haechan hums before turning on his other side, switching off the lamp to sleep.

Mark replies with a ,"rest well" and earned no more reply from Haechan. That night, he laid awake for a few more minutes, thinking, sorting out his thoughts and maybe his feelings too. He felt almost relieved that it was Lucas and not Yangyang with Haechan that night knowing that Lucas wasn't competition (not that Yangyang was but his brain was confusing). But Haechan hanging out with Lucas became more frequent after that. He woke up everyday with Haechan out of bed, attended training with Lucas and Haechan partnered up, breaks with the both of them huddled up in a corner by themselves in a hushed conversation and after training with them on Haechan's bed. It continued on for a few more days that it drove him insane.

Mark imagined how much teasing the Dreamers were doing behind his back and it punched a hole through his chest. Every time he got a glimpse of even Lucas or Yangyang's shadow he would be glaring at empty space. Hearing others talk about Haechan made him mad and seeing others hang out with the younger made him burn with envy. Not only when he heard a conversation between Lucas and Haechan about something that made him angry and confront Haechan. 

It was after training and Mark was on his way to their room when he heard Haechan and Lucas talking through the door.

_"I've been keeping it to myself for the longest of time because I didn't want you to see me differently but I can't do it anymore. When I first saw you, you were really really cool and at evaluations, you were even cooler. What I'm trying to say is, I li-"_

Lucas didn't get to finish what he was saying for Mark had already busted in the room with his face red and eyes sharp, zeroed in on Haechan while Lucas and Haechan had both sported a shocked expression on their faces.

"Out", Mark commanded with his gaze still fixated on Haechan who now had a blank look and a slight smirk on his face.

Confused, Lucas turned to Haechan as if asking him if he should do as asked and only when Haechan nodded slightly that he turned around, sighed and opened the door. Holding the door open, he asks, "we'll continue this tomorrow I guess?"

Haechan was about to answer but Mark had beaten him to it and answered, "no you won't be" and slammed the door shut.

Facing Haechan, he asks the younger "what the fuck was that?"

Feigning innocence, Haechan answers, "I don't know what you're talking about" and turned to sit on his bed but Mark catches his wrist, his grip tight which made him turn around and face the older. Haechan saw the fire that burned in Mark's eyes which made him chuckle inwardly.

"You don't know? He was confessing to you!" Mark's voice was a bit louder as he says those words.

"I think my love life isn't you're business _hyung_ "

Maybe it was the small smile on Haechan's face or the look on his face or maybe the way he had called him hyung which Haechan never does unless he was purposely aggravating him but it clearly broke something in him that made him snap.

"You confessed to _me_ first and acted like nothing happened after. You started hanging out with people except _me_ more. Not to mention how you've been more touchy with Taeil hyung and payed more attention to Yangyang and now Lucas is confessing to you? What the fuck Haechan?"

"So?"

If Mark still had patience left, it has now ran out at that moment.

_"So?_ So?! Do you know how confused I was? You confessed to me the first day and ignore me the next? You kept hanging out with other people but doesn't even bat an eye when I pass your way? What was confession for if you were only going to ignore me? To make me think of how beautiful you were? Or-or how when you laugh you throw your head back a little bit? Or that you make everything a little bit lighter with your humor? Your confession drove me insane and you just ignored me? And now Lucas is confessing to you and you act like it's nothing?!"

"Wow didn't know it would work on you".

Haechan's reply confused Mark even more. What did he mean? What worked on him?

"Mark before I answer your question, let me ask you this. What am I?"

Confused, Mark answers, "You're human what the fuck is that question?"

"Of course I'm human you dumbass. I meant, what's my title? my role as an Ace and a Dreamer" Haechan rolls his eyes as he asks once more, this time the question more clear.

And as if the heavens have opened up and answered his prayers, realization dawns on Mark as he mumbles his answer.

"A trickster".

Haechan watches with pure amusement as Marks pulls at his hair frustratedly.

"I confessed to you because I knew you never thought of me that way. My confession made you think that I would shower you with attention now that I know you know how I feel but it made you frustrated when I didn't so your brain made you notice all the things you didn't notice about me before and more. It made you realize that you indeed liked me but was too dense to realize on your own", Haechan says, a smirk playing on his lips.

"God I hate you so much", Mark groaned.

Haechan chuckles lightly before replying, "Come now, we both know that's not true".

"Shut up"

"Or what?" Haechan challenges only for him to be taken aback once Mark faces him and advanced in his direction, a small devilish smile on his face.

"Mark? w-what are you doing?" Haechan didn't mean to stutter but the close proximity between his and Mark's face made him nervous for one small move from either of them would make them connect lips. And that's exactly what Mark did.

Connecting their lips, Haechan felt his stomach drop and his eyes close. It wasn't like what it said in the books. The time didn't feel like it stopped or slowed and the world certainly didn't seem like it was quiet. It wasn't like what the movies showed either. He didn't see fireworks behind his eyes or feel butterflies in his stomach. Instead, what he felt was peace. Calmness rolled in waves on his nerves and his senses felt like they were heightened. 

Mark's lips felt soft upon his, tasting like mint and a little bit sweet. The older's hand felt like feathers upon his face as Mark cupped his. Their kiss was soft, gentle. Savoring their moment and as Mark lets go of the younger's lips who slowly started to open his eyes, he leans his forehead on his. Breathing each other's air felt like a dream. With neither of them saying anything, all that could be heard from the room was the silent hum of the air conditioning and their light breaths.

"Again?"

Mark chuckles at Haechan's question but who was he who to pass up the opportunity on kissing the sunshine boy?

That night, they laid on Mark's bed together. Cuddling, basking in each other's warmth, sharing kisses. They talked about the most random things with Haechan mostly teasing and laughing at how Mark's been jealous for the past few days. Their legs crossed over each other and Haechan's head laying on Mark's chest as the older ran his fingers on the youngers hair, Mark suddenly thought of something which made him stop what he was doing. Looking up, Haechan shot a questioning gaze at him.

"Did Lucas really try to confess to you?"

Mark's question made Haechan look at him funny before bursting out in bubbles of laughter. 

"What's so funny?" asks Mark, in a frustrated voice once again.

Haechan immediately calmed and looked at older again.

"Oh you were being serious?"

"Of course"

Haechan clicks his tongue before replying, "First, it's rude to eavesdrop on other's conversation. Second, since you already heard some of it, think. What did Lucas say exactly?"

Mark tries to recall Lucas' words as best he could while Haechan watched his concentrated face.

_'I've been keeping it to myself for the longest of time because I didn't want you to see me differently but I can't do it anymore. When I first saw you, you were really really cool and at evaluations, you were even coo-',_

Wait. Haechan wasn't part of evaluations. 

Mark looks down at Haechan so fast he was surprised the older didn't pull a muscle. 

"He was rehearsing his confession and for the past few days, he's been asking me on relationship advice. Even I don't know how he came up with the idea of asking me but who was I to deny someone who wanted my help?" Haechan replies, laying his head back down on the older's chest. 

"Confession for who?" Mark asks. 

"For Renjun". 

Shocked, Mark asks Haechan again just to make sure he heard him right, "Like our Renjun? Assassin in training Huang Renjun?" 

Haechan only hums as his reply and snuggled closer to the older. 

"I never though Lucas' type was the serious ones. Do you think he has a chance with Junnie?" 

Mark waits for a reply that doesn't come so he calls the younger's name.

"Hyuck?"

it's only when he looks down that he realizes that the younger had fallen asleep. He looks at him with a fond smile on his face.

"You're truly something else Lee Haechan. Sleep tight", he says as he kisses the crown of the younger's head and moving in a comfortable position, careful to not wake the sleeping form on top of him. That night, Mark had his most well rested sleep yet.  
  
Three days passed by so quickly with all of their training. They woke up to train and went to bed after that as soon as they laid on the covers, they were out like a light. Exhaustion seeped and soaked their bones, headaches from mind training and studying codes. Members who led the trainings took it the hardest. Not only were they tired, but stressed as well. But they couldn't let that cloud their judgement for they can't afford to hurt each other be it their feelings or cause their mental health to deteriorate. For some, it was alright. Jeno, Yangyang, Haechan, Yuta, Winwin and Jisung had been used to handling a lot of stress. With Jeno, he was comfortable with stress for sometimes it becomes his driving force to go on further. Mind communications and telekinesis requires a lot of mental capacity so stress wasn't a new thing to both Winwin and Jisung. Codes was something that needed a lot of concentration and a clear head that Yangyang learned how to deal with all the pressure and stress already. For Haechan, the young trickster was smart enough not to let things like that cloud his mind. Yuta had been to hell and back that a mere thing like stress could not destroy his focus. Everyone knew how to deal with all that except for Renjun.

Renjun was the kind of person who aced his field of expertise that it was new to teach a whole crowd of people something he was good at. He understood that some of them might've never held nor fired a gun even once in their life. He was considerate. But a man could only take so much stress and pressure that it would only be matter of time that he broke. It was after close combat training with Jeno and gun firing training was next. Maybe it was the exhaustion, the stress or maybe Renjun just wanted out of everything for a moment. Nonetheless of what it was, it made him snap.

"Jaemin you're holding it wrong. God we've been doing this for days and you're still doing it like it's your first time".

Jaemin was taken aback by his friend's harsh tone that it made him scared for a moment. Nodding timidly, he carefully held the gun, extending his arms on how he was taught to. Aiming forward, he fired a few rounds until he was out of ammunition. Loading the gun, he was startled by Renjun's voice once again.

"Jaemin for goodness sake! You can't even hit the center just at least one time? How are you so bad?" 

Renjun's voice echoed in Jaemin's ears despite the protective gear he was wearing, but the younger didn't bother to respond, only nod and faced the targets once again.

"Don't worry Jaemin. You'll get the hang of it. Renjun's just having a bad day", Lucas tried to cheer him up from his left to which brought a small smile on his face.

"Thanks Lucas", he thanks the older who smiles at him in return.

Another round of bullets later and Renjun's voice once again was yelling at him.

"Jaemin! That's even worse than the first time! How do you think you're going to protect Jisung with your shit skills?"

That did it for Jaemin. Bowing his head down, he held back his tears. 

_'Renjun, that's enough'_ Yuta says.

"I got this hyung", Renjun says, his tone cold.

'I'm sorry. I'll do it again", Jaemin says in a quiet voice.

Renjun scoffs before he snaps at him, "Then what? God you're so bad at everything. What are you gonna do out there? Turn invisible, run really fast and save yourself?"

"Take it back", Jeno says from behind and as Renjun turned to face him, he saw the look of pure rage and anger on Jeno's face but he wasn't afraid. 

"I said what I said", Renjun says, holding his ground.

Jaemin sniffles a bit which made all of the attention turn to him and as he lifts his head, his glassy eyes met with Renjun's who suddenly had came back to his senses. Jaemin's eyes widened before he screamed, "Jeno no!"

But it was too late for as Renjun turned away from Jaemin, his jaw connected with Jeno's fist swung at him. He staggered backwards while holding his jaw.

"You know better than to talk to Nana that way Jun. You know better than anyone not to talk about that to Nana", Jeno's words awakened something in Renjun that made him regret his earlier words. As he looked at Jeno, he saw the redness in his eyes from holding back tears and maybe anger, the disappoint on the Dreamers' faces, the confused gazes from others and Jaemin's broken expression.

"I-I'm sorry" he stutters quietly, looking down in shame.

"Lee Jeno".

Doyoung's voice echoed through the quiet shooting range that made everybody turn to him.

"The governor wants to see you", the sternness in Doyoung's voice made everyone straighten up.

"What? I'm not the one being an asshole", Jeno glared at Renjun as he said the last words who still had his head down.

"I didn't ask anything. Come with me. Now" Doyoung's command was so strong that he had no choice but to obey.

Sighing, he looks at Haechan and gestured to Jaemin. Nodding, Haechan approaches the younger who now looks up.

"I'm not a child Jen. I can take care of myself", he says in silent sniffles.

Jeno only smiled at him and turned to Doyoung with a straight face, following after the older who led the way out of the training grounds. None of them talked after that. Everybody just dispersed quietly and Renjun was left alone in the room with Lucas looking back at the younger, feeling bad for him. As everybody left, Renjun looks up just to see Jungwoo looking at him. 

"What are you doing here hyung?" he asks the older, confused.

Jungwoo offers a small smile before sitting beside the younger on the floor.

"Thought you might need a friend".

Jungwoo's words warmed Renjun's heart that it made him smile.

"Thanks hyung", he says quietly.

The both of them sat in a comfortable silence inside the room with only the soft hum of the machines making a sound. That's when Jungwoo decided to speak.

"I understand you know?" 

Renjun looks at Jungwoo in a questioning glance.

"I'm not saying what you said to Jaemin was right and I know you know that but you were tired and stressed. Sometimes, when we're too in on our heads, we say things we don't mean out of frustration. I'm sure everybody else will understand if you apologize".

Jungwoo's words made him think. The older was right and he knew that too. He was an asshole for saying something like that to Jaemin. Everybody was tired and stressed. There was no reason for him to take his frustrations out on his friend. He felt bad about himself.

"Hey I know that look", Jungwoo says who glared at him slightly.

"What?" he asks.

"That's the look someone has when their saying bad things about themselves".

Renjun looks at Jungwoo in surprise.

"You're allowed to feel bad but don't go telling yourself your a bad friend. We all make mistakes Renjun. That's what makes us human. What matters is if we're willing to own up to our mistakes, apologize and make things right", Jungwoo says.

And that's what Renjun did. After training and dinner in the evening, he knocked at Jaemin's door with the younger's favorite drink as a peace offering. Not much words were said for as soon as Jaemin opened the door with his red eyes and nose, flushed cheeks, Renjun attacked him with a tight hug, mumbling his apologies. Being the soft hearted person Jaemin is, he forgave his friend straight away. As they let go of each other after a few more minutes of hugging each other by the door way, is the only time Renjun noticed that all the Dreamers were looking at them smiling faces. 

They all hugged each other as Jisung screamed for a group hug with Renjun squished right in the middle. Jeno apologized for the punch but the older just laughed it off, saying he deserved it and Jeno telling him he did with a chuckle. Safe to say, the Dreamers evening was full of laughter and teasing how Renjun was all cold and such during the training. They sat at Jaemin's big bed in a circle just talking about anything they could think of when a knock on the door suddenly interrupted them. Looking at each other as if asking who should open it, Haechan sighs and stands up. Walking over to the door, he opens it just to be surprised on who it was. Composing himself, he tries to hide his growing smile as he calls for the person the person at the door was for.

"Hey Junnie, someone's here for you".

All of them had confused faces as Renjun got up and went to the door.

"Lucas? What are you doing here?" he asks, confused as the older just smiled at him nervously.

"Um hi! I wanted to talk to you if it's fine?" he says.

"Sure. What for?"

"I was thinking if we could talk in private?"

"Oh".

Renjun glances at the Dreamers who only nodded at him. Though he was confused, he followed Lucas. As Haechan closes Jaemin's door, everybody turns to him in question.

"What was that about?" Chenle asks.

Haechan chuckles before replying, "Let's just say that if everything goes well, Junnie wouldn't be lonely anymore".

"Why? Was Renjun hyung lonely before? He got us why would he be lonely?" asks a confused Jisung.

The Dreamers just chuckled at the clueless whisperer.

Lucas and Renjun walked silently side by side until they were a bit farther from the quarters. Once there, Lucas faced Renjun.

"So, what is it?" asks Renjun.

"Uh well, I just wanted tell you something", says Lucas, nervousness in his face.

Seconds passed with neither of them talking and Renjun wasn't the most patient person.

"Well?" Renjun urges him to say something.

With a deep sigh, Lucas finally says very fast, "IlikeyouandifyoudletmeIpromisetotreatyourightpleasedonthateme".

Lucas had his eyes shut tight as Renjun only looks at him in complete confusion, not understanding anything that the older just said.

"Uh Lucas I didn't, I didn't understand that. Maybe talk slowly?" he asks him.

"Um, I like you and if you'd let me I promise to treat you right. Please don't hate me", Lucas cowers away from Renjun after saying that.

"Oh"

Renjun didn't know how to reply to that. Nobody had ever confessed to him before. Seeing Lucas so afraid of him that he found him adorable. 

"Lucas I don't hate you", he says which makes the older open his eyes.

The sparkle in the Lucas' eyes knocked the air out of Renjun's lungs. His eyes, they were beautiful. 

"Really?" asks Lucas.

Gathering his composure, he assures the older, "Yeah. Honestly, I find you quite charming yourself".

The both of them looked at each other with flushed cheeks.

"I'm not sure if I like you yet. I've never liked anyone. All I know is that you make me smile with that personality of yours. I'm sorry", Renjun says.

"No no. Don't apologize. That's good enough for me", Lucas says excitedly.

"You don't have to like me back too. I can like you on my own while you sort your feelings out. I can wait", he adds.

Renjun almost melted at Lucas' words. The both of them smiled at each other before saying their farewells and parted ways. Lucas slept that night with a smile on his face and his heart filled with content while Renjun stayed up all night, thinking about the gentle giant with a lovely smile and beautiful face.

Days passed and trainings went on as usual. Everything was going on normally. Everyone thought so too. Training was the same; their routine, the tiredness, everything. Haechan thought otherwise. The night Jeno came back from seeing the governor, the trickster noticed a change from the older. For him, Jeno was acting strange. It wasn't noticeable unless you knew Jeno for the longest of time. That's why he was shocked Jaemin hasn't noticed it still knowing they've practically known each other since they were in their mothers' wombs.

Sure Jeno wasn't treating them any differently, he was even extra sweet to Jaemin for the past days but Jeno has been a bit, aggressive. During training, Jeno would drive them over their limit until they were almost limping from exhaustion. Thankfully, Doyoung provided them drinks after that seemed to replenish every energy that was lost during close combat training with Jeno. Not only that but Jeno had been frequently disappearing in the middle of training and sometimes, summoned by the governor. Nobody questioned it but Haechan found it weird.

"So are we on for that movie night?" Jaemin asks his boyfriend.

"Xiaojun and I are going over tests for the new weapons he made. The compositions are from Caratland so we have to. Sorry nana. Maybe tomorrow night?" Jeno says as he packed his things.

Jaemin pouts before saying, "You've been hanging out with Xiaojun these past few days. I'm starting to think you like your weapons more than me".

Jeno chuckles at that. Looking at Jaemin, Jeno's gaze soften.

"You know that's not true. Promise this is the last night and then tomorrow after training we can the evening all to ourselves".

Jaemin lights up Jeno's words.

"Promise?"

"Promise", Jeno says as he smiles at the younger.

"Okay! Don't stay up too late. Love you!" Jaemin says, kissing Jeno's cheek and dashing out of the training room.

"Love you too!" Jeno says, a bit louder to make sure Jaemin heard, sending a kiss through his fingers to which the younger responded by forming a heart over his head which made him chuckle at his boyfriend's antics.  
  
Jaemin paused the movie he was watching to get more water from the kitchen. Getting up, he held his phone and bottle. Walking out of his room, he quickened his pace to get back on the movie he was watching. As he opened the fridge, he heard movement. Looking back he saw Xiaojun entering the kitchen. Deciding to greet the older, he smiled.

"Hey", Xiaojun greets.

"Hey how's the testing going?" he asks, in hopes to get an update from his boyfriend since Jeno wasn't responding to his texts.

"Testing?" Xiaojun asks, confused.

Jaemin looks at him funny for not answering straight away.

"Yeah. You know, testing Jeno's weapons you made that had new materials from Caratland?" he asks, deciding that maybe the older had more testing than just Jeno's weapons.

"Oh that! We did that yesterday".

Xiaojun's answer made him freeze. IF they did that yesterday, then where the hell was Jeno going? Did Jeno just lie to him?

"Hey you alright?" Xiaojun's concerned tone made him come back to reality. It's only then that he noticed he was shaking mildly.

""Y-Yeah. Um, have a good night". 

Jaemin bid the older farewell too fast that Xiaojun didn't have the time to respond. Running back to his room, Jaemin's mind ran a thousand mile per hour, thinking of what could Jeno be doing for him to lie to him.  
  


Taeyong sighs at the neat stack of paper on his desk. If there was something he hated doing, it was paperwork at the end of each month. He read files after files and signed papers after papers. By the time it was dinner time, he was exhausted. A knock on his door made him look up.

"Come in".

The door swung open to reveal his advisor.

"Dinner's ready", Doyoung says.

"What time is it?" he asks, fixing himself.

"Just in time for you to dine with the others", Doyoung answers.

Taeyong rolls his eyes at that.

"I told you I could help".

"And I told you I could do it on my own", he replies to his stubborn advisor.

"Yeah whatever. They're waiting for you in Neo Zone", Doyoung says.

The two of them rode the elevator down to Neo Zone in silence. After a few moments, they arrived. Taking their time, the both of them walked to the dining area. Once there, they were greeted by everyone already sat down. Once they saw him and his advisor, everybody got up and bowed. Urging them to take a seat, he made his way to the head of the table.

Taeyong stood at the head of the table, holding a wine glass, proposing a toast as everyone turned their attention to him.

"I'd like to thank everyone of you. For working hard and giving your all to defend our country. I hope we will be as united as now till the end. Cheers!"

"Cheers!"

As everybody drank from their glasses, their heads whipped in their governor's direction as they heard the a glass shattering and a groan. Taeyong's glass fell from his hands, a pained expression on his face. As their governor fell to the ground, they saw Jeno, holding a blooded knife in his hand. Before anyone could make a move or recover from shock, Jisung's father had already snatched Jeno's body and disappeared from the scene. Leaving everybody either heartbroken or enraged for vengeance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please do talk to me in my cc :(( I like talking to my readers (if there are any lol) and sorry for the hold up. Next chapter will most likely be later too bc my exams r next week :((


	8. Turn Back Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "it’s when you lose the people that mean to you the most you realize they are the people who means the world to you”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry it took so long :[ anws, Happy Holidays everyone! talk to me on my cc if u want. I like talking to ppl :]

At age 12, Jeno and Jaemin became orphans. Both of their families were extremely close for Mrs. Lee and Mrs. Na were childhood bestfriends. Jeno and Jaemin grew up doing everything and anything together. The Na family were full of power blessed people. Every single descendant harnessed a supernatural ability whereas the Lee family had always been all brawns. Once Jaemin reached his 10th birthday, he showed signs of being a double ability wielder. Slowly, it progressed and became more prominent. This made him a target for bounty hunters. So, both of the families went into hiding. But a number of people can only hide for so long. 

One night, when all was asleep, the Lee and Na household caught fire. When everybody awoke, all exits were already blocked with assassins waiting for them outside. There was no way everybody could escape. Jaemin's mother found an opening in their basement, just big enough for a twelve year old Jeno and Jaemin to escape. With tear-stricken face, jaemin held his mother's hand tight as he refuses to leave. Jeno hardly tugged the younger's hands loose from his mother with an equally pained and tear stained face.

_"Take care of my son. Promise me Jeno. You'll protect my jaemjaem always, won't you?"_

The two of them wandered Division U for so long. Constantly on the run, looking at their backs trying to not get killed. Until Governor Lee stumbled upon them one day. They were taken to the orphanage since then, shielded away from the public. They were put under the special program and became part of the people being considered to be a Dreamer. Jeno stuck to Jaemin's side like glue. It wasn't easy convincing him that the governor had no ill intentions on putting the both of them to be a Dreamer. It was a very thorough discussion to which ended with a lot of assurance and a written agreement between the governor and Jeno. 

If there was something to happen to either of them, the government must protect the surviving other, respect and grant their wishes no matter what. It was the only way Jeno had agreed.

  
  
**Chaos**

That was the word to describe the aftermaths of Taeyong's death. With an enemy on the loose, Doyoung had decided that no further announcements should be made to the nctzens. They needn't know that their governor has passed for it will only cause a great deal of hysteria. While the nctzens were kept in the dark of what was happening and about to happen, the people inside Neo Zone had raised hell among themselves.

_"Taeyong!"_

_Doyoung's scream echoed through the dining which made everybody come back to reality. All of them stood in horror as blood pooled from Taeyong's body. With weak and shallow breaths, Taeyong tried to hold on Doyoung's hand who began to sob as he laid the governor's head on his lap. Everybody crowded over them as Johnny ran to signal the emergency alarms._

_"I-I'm sorry", Taeyong says followed by a groan._

_"I sh-should've listened to you", he adds with another groan in between his words._

_"Stop talking! You're wasting your strength!" Taeil yelled at him from beside Doyoung who held his other hand as he held back his cries._

_Taeyong chuckles weakly which turned into another pain filled groan._

_"My moon. My sight is all blurry but I still see your beautiful face so clearly", Taeyong says softly as he touches the older's face with a weak, blooded hand which made Taeil's held back sobs to escape. The Dreamers turned away from the sight of their governor,, crying into each other's arms._

_"No shut up. You're gonna be okay, you hear me? You're not dying. Where the fuck is Johnny?!" Taeil screams. Taeyong only holds onto Taeil's hand as tightly as his weak self could. SIlent cries could be heard from others. They knew their was nothing they could do. The stab from the back was fatal, it made him lose a lot of blood. It didn't hit vital organs but the blood coming out of his body was too much._

_"Protect Jisung always, okay? Don't let him out of your sights. He's our hope. Caratland-" Taeyong stops mid sentence, coughing up blood._

_"-Caratland has-"_

_Doyoung puts a weak finger upon his blooded lips to silence him, "It's okay Yongie. We're gonna be okay. We'll protect each other". Silent tears ran down his cheeks as he smiles down at Taeyong who tried to smile back at him which only turned into a grimace in pain. Everybody knelt beside Taeyong's body as the governor's breathing got even more shallow._

_"Thank you sir, for everything your family did for us. I'm sorry for everything", Jaemin sobs into Jisung's chest as the rest of the Dreamer's tried to comfort him despite sobbing themselves._

_Taeyong chuckles weakly as he says, "It isn't your fault Jaemin. It's okay. I'm okay"._

_"I'm thankful to have met all of you even if it wasn't for a long time. The fate of our country now lies in your hands. I'm sorry I'm leaving so soon. You must think how irresponsible I am", another weak chuckle escape the governor's lips as the others shook their head violently, disagreeing from his statement with tears running down their faces._

_"Stop talking Taeyong. Conserve your strength. You're not dying. You can't", Taeil's voice broke at the last word._

_Johnny ran through the halls of Neo Zone as fast as he could to the system room. He didn't stop though his lungs burned for oxygen and his legs ached. His heavy breaths bounced through the walls, feet echoing loudly. As he gets closer to the system room, he sees the unconscious bodies that laid by the walls. Not minding them for the time being, he resumes to what he was there for. Busting open the doors, he looks for the emergency alarms. Without wasting a second, he pulls the lever to signal it and within a minute or two, the private Forces and medical team arrived. With everyone, they all ran to Neo Zone's dining._

_The way back seemed farther to Johnny but it must've been his mind clouding with all the worst possible case scenarios but nonetheless, he pushed himself to believe it wasn't happening. He was the first to enter the dining and saw everyone crowding over Taeyong while crying. He felt as if time slowed down as the medical team shoo'd away the other and checked on Taeyong. As the head medic got up from checking on Taeyong, shaking his head with a sad expression, their whole world came crashing down on them._

_Governor Lee Taeyong is dead. Murdered before their eyes by the person they thought was an ally. A person they firmly believed in. A person who had given them friendship. A person who had sworn them loyalty and protection._

_As Taeyong's dead body was wheeled out of the room and the blood on the floor cleaned, Taeil couldn't help but look at the Dreamers. His gaze fixated on Jaemin. The young Dreamer being held by his friends lit a fire inside him. He had no right to feel hurt. His boyfriend betrayed them; killing Taeyong in the process. Dominated by his emotions, he couldn't help the rage of hurtful words that came out if his mouth._

_"You!" He points a shaking finger at Jaemin. Startled, everybody looks at Taeil. The younger wiped the tears streaming down his face, looks at Taeil with fear. If Taeil felt a little bit of pity for the younger, he set it aside. His anger was bigger than his caring side at that moment._

_"Your little boyfriend did this! He betrayed all of us. He killed Taeyong. How could he?! After all Taeyong's family has done for him? For you?! You both are nothing but a selfish, ungrateful, cowards!"_

_"Hyung"_

_Haechan calls for Taeil. The older turns to Haechan with the same anger on his face. Chuckling sarcastically, Taeil says, "What? Am I wrong? Taeyong and his family did so much for them. For all of us! And how does that ungrateful brat repay him? By killing him! What kind of fucked up brain does he have?!"_

_"Taeil that's enough" Johnny says, a hand on the older's shoulder._

_Taeil shrugs away Johnny's hand harshly before he says, "Why should I? Why should I stop? Why should I stop when we all know it's all that kid's fault?! We've already taken care of all the assassins and bounty hunters after him and his pathetic boyfriend and this is what Taeyong gets?! Betrayal and death? No Johnny! It isn't enough! Nothing they say or do will ever be enough! Until the day I am six feet under I will remember how Taeyong trusted you, cared for you, protected you and all you did was betray him"._

_The venom that laced Taeil's words made Jaemin bow his head down in shame. It was his fault. In his head, as Jeno's boyfriend and the person closest to him, he should've seen the strangeness in Jeno's actions. He should've confronted him the night he found out Jeno lied to him. He should've known but he didn't. And that made his heart ache for he knew how right Taeil was but it's too late now. All he could do now was blame himself and wallow in grief and shame._

  
  


The Visionaries all sat in a circle in silence inside Kun's room. Grief and the feeling of betrayal flooded their system. Xiaojun mostly. He should've been more curious of Jeno. He trusted him so easily for the everyone did too. He should've asked him questions when the younger started to ask him to make new weapons for him but he passed it as Jeno wanting to be ready of what was coming. He felt so stupid to just comply by the younger's requests. As per Lucas, he felt torn. He knew he shouldn't have to for Renjun had nothing to do with any of it but Kun says to distance themselves from both the Aces and Dreamers to avoid getting entangled from their mess. It was the same case for Winwin and Ten. 

Though Winwin and Yuta had an unspoken bond, Kun felt that the younger would be in trouble. It wasn't a matter of who was close with who. It was now a matter of survival and their leader didn't want the Aces being cautious of them as well. They steered clear of their way; not communicating with both parties was the way to go in Kun's opinion. Ten was a different situation. The seer hadn't told the leader anything. He knew it wasn't his business but it was still good if they at least knew where the Ten and Johnny stood now that everything was a mess. 

Yangyang lets go of a deep sigh and leans on Hendery's shoulder. The older lays a comforting hand on the younger's shoulder. Feeling the warmth, Yangyang snuggles closer to Hendery. A brief silence falls upon the group before Ten snatches their attention.

"I have a confession to make".

All heads turn to the seer. Ten's hands forms into fists in nervousness.

"Four days ago, I had a vision", Ten says which makes the Visionaries sit upright, full attention on him.

"What about?"

Hendery's question made Ten nervous. He knows he didn't do anything wrong but he was afraid. Afraid what the others would say or think.

"I'm actually not sure if it was just a bad dream or a nightmare at first but now with the things that happened, I guess it was a vision".

"Well?" Kun presses on.

Ten remains quiet for a few more seconds. When he was about to speak, Xiaojun had said him something that made him freeze.

"Don't tell me you had a vision of Taeyong dying and didn't tell us"

"Hey no way. That couldn't be", Winwin says, trying to not think too negative as he looks at Ten with a look as if he was desperate for the older to deny Xiaojun's words.

Ten's silence and bowed down head was enough for them to confirm Xiaojun's words. They didn't know what to feel or think. Disappointment? But Ten said he didn't know if it was a vision. Hurt? But Ten wasn't aware of the circumstances. Nobody expected the things that were to happen so they knew they couldn't blame the seer.

"Ten hyung, why didn't you tell us?" Yangyang asks softly. A look of hurt all across his face.

"I didn't want to cause unnecessary panic if it was just a bad dream. I'm sorry".

Ten's voice was quiet as he says those words. He felt deeply responsible of Taeyong's death. He should've said something. Guilt was eating him though he was not the one who had killed the governor, he felt he was one to blame too.

"It wasn't your fault", Kun says, hugging the seer who had a forlorn expression on his face.

"You didn't know. It's alright. We don't hate you", he adds and pats Ten's back. He looks at the others gestures for them to hug the younger to which the others didn't protest to and obliged immediately. They knew how Ten was. Their hyung wouldn't do something that would hurt anybody. Ten was too nice of a person for that. He was the kind of person to tease but when it came to someone's well-being, he was serious and wants everybody safe. 

Breaking away from the group hug, Lucas asks a question.

"Did you tell anyone else besides us hyung?"

"I did tell Johnny", the older responds.

"We shrugged it of at that time too, thinking it was nothing but a bad dream", he adds.

They all nodded understandingly at the seer. Silence envelops them once again. Nobody talked as they leaned on each other, seeking comfort. Their heads turned to the door once a knock interrupted their silence. Lucas yells a, "come in!" to let the person know it was alright to open the door. As the knob turned and the door swings open just a bit, Jungwoo's head pops in.

The mechanist seemed to be caught off guard upon seeing all the Visionaries gathered on Kun's bed, snuggled to each other still, he said what he came for.

"Um Johnny hyung said to call everybody to say our last goodbyes to Taeyong hyung", Jungwoo says softly.

Hearing Jungwoo say that felt like a wake up call to everyone. Their governor was really dead. Of course they knew that. It happened right before their eyes but saying it like that, having to bid their governor farewell made it more real and more painful. As if time stilled, nobody talked until Hendery says,

"Thank you Jungwoo. We'll catch up".

The young mechanist left silently with just a small smile as a goodbye. Nobody made a move to get up. All of them stayed in each other's arms. Maybe it was to get a grip of their reality, to collect their thoughts or just to comfort their grieving hearts. Nonetheless, they basked in each other's warmth just a little bit longer before Kun said that they had to go. Their steps felt heavy and strides short. The main area wasn't far from the quarters but going there felt a lot longer than before. With heavy hearts, they walked a little bit faster, not wanting to keep the others waiting.

When the Visionaries got there, it was only Johnny, Doyoung and a closed casket.

"Where's everybody?" asks Lucas.

"Johnny already sent Jungwoo and Yuta to call everybody. Taeil said his goodbyes already. He wanted it to be just him and Taeyong", answers Doyoung.

"He's really gone", mumbles Kun but since the area was empty, his voice was heard by everybody.

At that moment, silence never felt so loud. The scream of silence bounced through walls, resonated at every hall as everybody arrived and stood clustered before Taeyong's casket. One by one, they said their goodbyes without a word spoken. Only tears running down their faces, sobs and cries escaping their lips. Jaemin was the last to say his farewell. It took the younger a bit more time than the others and once he was done, he ran away. The Dreamers followed their fellow member with their eyes worriedly. Mark looked at Doyoung as if to ask permission to leave and only when the older nodded did he tell his members that it was alright to follow the younger. The Dreamers were the first to leave.

Lucas let his eyes follow the young assassin run after his friend. He felt sad for the younger. 

_'I should be there to comfort him',_ he thought.

An idea in his head, he looked at Kun who already had his eyes on him. Kun shook his head in refutation which made Lucas' hopeful look to disappear. His shoulders sagged in disappointment. He wanted to be there for Renjun. To comfort, maybe talk to him. Anything just to let the younger feel as though he wasn't alone. Of course he knew the Dreamers were there for Renjun but there was longing in his heart and he wanted to be there for the younger too.

Kun sighs as he sees the sad look on Lucas' face. He taps the younger on the shoulder to grab his attention to which Lucas turns to him with the same solemn look on his face. He nods and gestured to the way the Dreamers ran to and the way Lucas' face lit up made a small smile appear on his lips. Lucas hugged the older sideways and walked away from the cluster; following the Dreamers to find Renjun. 

"What was that about?" asked Hendery.

"Renjun", Kun answers simply as Hendery only nods in acknowledgement.

Everyone stood silently as Taeyong's casket was carried out of the room.

"We'll give you a few moments to yourself for the morning and have a meeting in the afternoon. We'll resume training in the evening. You're all dismissed", Doyoung says, his tone icy and expression stoned. The Aces and Kun have known Doyoung for quite some time and they have never seen that look on him before. They saw how he was when he was angry, sad, happy. Every emotion, they have seen on Doyoung but never that blank and stoned expression. Not even when everything with Jaehyun went downhill. And in all honesty, it scared them. Especially Jaehyun.

If there was someone who knew Doyoung inside out, it was Taeyong. With Taeyong gone, Doyoung was like a big puzzle with all the pieces scattered and a few missing. As the advisor took his leave, Jaehyun ran after him, worried. 

"Doyoung!"

As if he hadn't heard him, Doyoung kept walking as the younger followed him.

"Doyoung I know you can hear me".

_'Of course I do. I'm not fucking deaf'_

"Doyoung, hey", Jaehyun got a hold of Doyoung's wrist just for the older to pull his hand back.

"What? What do you want Jung?" 

Doyoung's tone was harsh and cold that it almost made Jaehyun wince. Nonetheless, the younger offered a small smile.

"You don't have to put your walls up Doyoung. I'm here. You still have me".

Jaehyun's remark caught Doyoung off guard but the surprise in his expression was gone as soon as it was there. The way Jaehyun had said it soflty, full of emotion moved Doyoung but he couldn't let the younger see that.

"You don't know what you're talking about Jae", Doyoung says. He didn't quite understand why Jaehyun suddenly looked at him, surprised but he brushed it off.

"You called me Jae", Jaehyun whispered to himself incredulously but the words fell deaf upon Doyoung's ears.

Confused, the older asks, "What?"

"You called me Jae", Jaehyun repeats enthusiastically which made Doyoung's eyes widen in realization.

_'Well fuck. Good going Kim. That was totally the plan. Great job'._

Doyoung only scoffs and turns the opposite direction from Jaehyun to leave the younger who still had a look of happiness on his face. It's only when Doyoung is a few more steps away from him that Jaehyun realizes the older was not in front of him anymore. So, he runs after him. Again.

"Doyoung come on!"

No reaction.

"Doyoung let's talk".

That was what made Doyoung stopped walking enabling Jaehyun to catch up.

"We have nothing to talk about", Doyoung says, his back still turned.

"Yes we have. It doesn't have to be all about us. I just want you to open up. Keeping things to yourself; the pain, grief, sadness. Whatever it is, it's not healthy Doyoung. You're only hurting yourself. I know how much Taeyong meant to you. If someone knows how much you loved and cared for Taeyong as if he was your own blood, that would be me and you know that. You're not stupid Doyoung. So please, don't shut me, us out. If you don't want to talk to me, that's fine. I will understand. But please, talk to someone. Don't let yourself be swallowed by your emotions and blame the events on yourself because it wasn't your fault. None of it was your fault".

The way Jaehyun said his words; the softness and care in his tone melted Doyoung's walls. Like marshmallows on top of hot chocolate on a cold Christmas morning. That was how Jaehyun's voice sounded to Doyoung. It left a strange but warm comforting feeling in his gut. The same feeling he got all those years ago when they were young and everything was well. Though Doyoung wanted to talk to Jaehyun, he knew he couldn't. Fear dominated his love for the younger. He wanted to keep Jaehyun safe, even if it meant that he had to love him from a distance. Even if it meant hurting them both, Doyoung was better off in pain knowing Jaehyun was alive than the both of them be together and their love be the reason for Jaehyun to be in danger like Taeyong was. Of course he knows all of them are in potential danger but he likes to think that not revealing your weaknesses to your enemy is a great move.

Neo City has always been governed by the Lee's but only handful knew that the Lee's were served by gifted advisors that helped kept them on their feet. In a game of poker when a royal flush is laid on the table, Taeyong would be an Ace; the highest card there is. But an ace can also be the lowest card. That was Taeyong for Neo City. He can be the highest and the lowest but the standard is himself. Doyoung was a Joker; a wild card. Like all the past advisors, he was everything Taeyong needed and vice versa. Without Taeyong, Doyoung was vulnerable to everything. For in this times, whoever was closest to Doyoung, they would be a target for the advisor recognized, he was next to Jisung being the person their enemy will be after as he knew everything about Neo City.

So the advisor has decided to himself, he needed Jaehyun to be at a distance from him. When he was about to tell the younger off, his phone rang. 

With a sigh, he takes the call.

"What?"

Doyoung's grumpy expression melted as soon as the person on the other end of the line responded. A few seconds passed before he disconnected the call. Facing Jaehyun with his stance relaxed and a serene look on his face, as if the few words he had received sent a calming wave on his nerves, he says, 

"Alright Jae. Let's talk".

The smile on Jaehyun's face almost caught him off guard. The subtle dimples and crinkly eyes. God how much Doyoung has missed that. As if Doyoung had suddenly went on a complete 180, he leads the way to a private room for the both of them to talk. And maybe work on the sexual tension they had been living off on.

  
  


Lucas speed walks after the Dreamers. He follows the faint sound of their footsteps only for him to realize that they were going back to their quarters. Knowing the way, he took his time in walking just to think of what he could do for the Dreamers. He was always a literal ball of fun but knowing the circumstances, he reckon that it would be an insensitive move to be his usual bubbly self. So, he thinks it might be better to keep quiet and just be there for the young people. Lost in his thoughts, he finds himself face to face with Renjun's door. Taking a deep breathe, he knocks.

He waits for a few seconds for a response but there is nothing. He knocks once more, this time calling the young assassin's name, in hopes of him answering the door but again, nothing. He was about to knock once again when his name is suddenly called by a voice behind. Turning around, he sees Mark.

"Lucas? What are you doing there?"

Flushed cheeks and shy hands folded, Lucas answers, "Uh I'm looking for Renjun".

"Oh".

They share an awkward silence before mark clears his throat and finally opens his mouth.

"The kids are in Jeno's room. Jaemin needs all the comfort right now".

"Oh. Is it okay for me to join you guys? I don't want to intrude", Lucas says in a quiet voice.

"No no it's alright. I guess it's fine".

With that said, they walk to Jeno's room where the Dreamers were in total silence. Opening the door, Mark enters first with Lucas towering behind him.

"Hey, someone was looking for us", Mark says and gestures towards Lucas.

The Visionary waved slightly with a friendly smile on his face.

"Hi. Um I just wanted to make sure you guys were alright. I didn't mean to intrude. If you want me out I can go. I totally understand", Lucas says, nervousness clear in his voice.

A napkin over his red nose, his eyes teary, Jaemin shakes his head and says, "no it's fine. It's alright Lucas. I don't mind. I appreciate the concern".

It might've been the comforting smile that Jaemin flashed him that made Lucas exhale lightly and his chest warm or it might've been the way Renjun had a look of appreciation on his face. Nonetheless, it made him feel comfortable.

"So how are you guys taking it?" Haechan asks Lucas.

They shared a few seconds of silence before the Visionary answered, "We're-, I don't really know. I think it hasn't sunk in yet that Taeyong is gone, who we thought was Jisung's father turns out to be the enemy, and Jeno is-"

A pause. Lucas looked at Jaemin, weary, as if he was afraid to offend the younger.

"It's fine Lucas. Not saying it doesn't make it less real. I'm trying to accept it myself. It's fine. Jeno betrayed us, me. We have to accept it as it is", Jaemin says as he continues to sniffle quietly.

Jisung rubs Jaemin's back in an attempt to soothe the older. Silence filled the room for a few moments before Jaemin suddenly bursts in fits of tears, sobbing uncontrollably. The Dreamer hiccups as he tries to hold back his sobs but to no avail, he continues to cry. Lucas feels sad at the sight of Jaemin. He couldn't imagine how hurt they were given the circumstances. Chenle holds Jisung's hand in a way to comfort his struggling friend and sooth his mind as well.

Haechan looks at Lucas and sees the expression on the older.

"Junnie I think you should talk to Lucas", the trickster whispers to the young assassin.

Startled, Renjun stares at Haechan questioningly, "Me? What are you trying to do now?"

"Nothing. I just think Lucas might be a bit uncomfortable. Besides, you two need to talk anyway".

"We don't", Renjun whispers harshly.

Haechan only looks at him pointedly, "We both know that's not the truth".

Renjun sighs in defeat. Looking at Lucas, his gaze softens. The evident sad look on Lucas' face makes him feel bad for the Visionary. Of course he knew that it wasn't their fault but knowing Jeno was their member, a friend, a part of their family. They felt responsible for Jeno's betrayal. Especially Jaemin and Mark. Jaemin for he felt he was to blame for Jeno was closest to him and Mark for being a leader. Everybody felt guilty. It didn't help that Taeil had slapped them with the truth with his harsh words.

Renjun scoots over to Lucas' side as quietly as possible. Tapping the older on the back, he gains Lucas' attention. Lucas' big round eyes gazes at him questioningly.

"We should talk", Renjun whispers.

Lucas looked confused for a moment before he understood what Renjun meant.

"is it alright for us to leave? I feel bad for Jaemin", Lucas says.

"It's fine", Renjun says.

"Alright".

They both got up from their position on Jeno's bed. As they leave, Renjun clasps Mark's shoulder as if to announce their departure silently to which the older responds by tapping the younger's clasped hand on his shoulder lightly in acknowledgement. They slip out of the room silently and occupies the barren hallway of the quarters area. Hands folded, a shy look on their faces, they try to look at each other only for them to glance away once their eyes meet.

"So.." Lucas tries to start.

"Uh well I think I might have an answer for you", Renjun says which startles Lucas.

"You know you don't have to give me one right now, right? I understand the situation and I don't want to pressure you. I can wait. Maybe when all of this is over. I'm not going anywhere anyway", Lucas says.

Renjun's chest warms at Lucas' words. He isn't sure if it's because it's his first time hearing such words, treated with such assurance that he wasn't going to be left out. That he could take his time. All his life everything was rushed. It was always, "you have to learn fast" and "if you can't do it under difficult circumstances then how do you expect yourself to be the best?". He feels the warmth spread in his entire body, to his face and eyes. He looks at Lucas with his eyes glazed over.

"Thank you".

Renjun's choked out voice made Lucas look at Renjun suddenly. Noticing the younger's eyes glazed over with tears, he softens.

"Oh. Are you alright?"

_'Idiot. There's unshed tears in his eyes and you ask him if he's alright? Absolute idiot',_ Lucas curses at himself.

"Fine. I'm fine", Renjun says.

Lucas looks at Renjun as the younger wipes his eyes with his palms when he gets an idea. He isn't quite sure if it's a good one but he shrugged away all the negativity. Without a word a said, he crosses the little gap between them and wraps Renjun's small form in his arms. He tucks Renjun's head under his chin and hugs him. A solid minute passes with just the both of them seemingly awkwardly hugging each other in the empty hallway when he suddenly feels wetness on his chest.

Renjun's shoulder shook as he cried silently in Lucas' arms. Being wrapped in Lucas' arms felt different than when the Dreamers hugged him. It felt strange but also comforting. He recons it's only strange for he felt oddly safe and warm. Lucas rubbed Renjun's back to soothe the younger.

"Sshh. Let it out. I got you. I'm here".

They stayed like that for quite a while before Renjun calmed down and separated himself from Lucas' arms. 

"Thank you, for holding me", Renjun says.

"You know I'm here for you always right?" Lucas asks.

This time, Renjun is certain. That odd feeling when Lucas hugged him was because he felt safe in the Visionaries' arms. A different sense of comfort he wasn't able to feel before. Something's telling Renjun, Lucas is going to be worth it all.

"Now I do. Sorry about your shirt by the way", Renjun gestures shyly at Lucas' wet chest.

Lucas chuckles lowly, causing butterflies to erupt on the Dreamer's stomach.

"It's fine. It's just a shirt".

"Renjun".

Their moment is ruined by a voice Renjun knows all to well calling for his name. How could he not? It's the same voice of the person that blamed all of them for Taeyong's death. Though he understands where he was coming from, he can't help but be a bit angry. As the older and more mature one, Taeil should've known better than to let his feelings get to his head and blindly let rage take over his body and spew out harsh words at all of them.

With gritted teeth and a deep sigh, he responds to his name being called.

"Yes?"

"Do you know where Jaemin is?" Taeil asks.

Renjun felt his small anger ignite a fire within him. For why was he looking for Jaemin? To yell at him some more? To break Jaemin? What? Why?! What does he want? Was yelling at him in front of everybody, blaming everything on Jaemin for things he had no control of, not enough? 

"Why? Whatever you need to tell him, you can tell me", Renjun says.

Lucas is surprised with Renjun's harsh tone but he couldn't really blame the younger. He understood where he was coming from. It was only natural to protect your friend.

"That's alright. I just want to talk to him. Can you tell me where he is?" Taeil's tone was calm that it irritated Renjun so much. The younger wasn't sure if Taeil missed the harshness in his tone or just didn't mind it. It pissed him off.

"No. I don't think I can tell you".

"Why?" Taeil asks, confused.

Renjun laughs in Taeil's face sarcastically.

"Why? You're asking me why? After what you said to him, you're asking me why? Good one _hyung_ ".

Taeil sighs.

"Look, I'm not looking for him to pick a fight with him, you or any of you for that matter. I just got carried away earlier and got my emotions get to me. I'm here to apologize because I know what I did was wrong".

Renjun scoffs at him before he says, "Whatever. They're in Jeno's room. He's already beating himself up, blaming himself because of your words. Good luck telling him it wasn't his fault because god knows how Jaemin gets when people say shit to him".

Renjun walks away with Lucas following after him without sparing Taeil as much of a glance. 

Taeil knew Renjun was right. Of course he knew. He knew he shouldn't have blamed anyone. He knows that now. It wasn't easy coming to terms with his thoughts. Given the situation, he knew what he said was insensitive. He just couldn't fathom that Taeyong was gone without knowing how he felt.

Yes. He was in love with Lee Taeyong. And Taeyong dying right before his eyes, laying in his arms as he took his last breath and telling him how he was so beautiful in his eyes drove him mad. It made him feel everything and nothing all at once that he wasn't aware of the things he was saying. He knows it doesn't justify his words and actions. But then again, when your emotions gets the best of you, you become either the best or the worst version of yourself. Earlier, he became the worst. 

The important thing is, he knows that now. And as of that moment, he wants to apologize. It won't turn back time and unsay the words he's said but he hopes it's enough to ease the younger's feelings. They all lost someone today and all they have left is each other. 

Taeil raises his fist to knock on Jeno's door. His fist hovering over the door, taking a big gulf of air to clear his mind, he raps his fist on the door. Waiting for someone to answer, he straightens. It wasn't a long wait before Mark greeted him from the other side of the door. Startled, Mark looks at him wide-eyed as he offers a small and what he hopes is a gentle smile.

"Hyung", Mark greets silently.

"May I come in?" he asks.

Mark seemed to contemplate to which Taeil understands.

"I'm not here to hurt anyone Mark. Trust me".

Mark sighs upon hearing his words. Opening the door wider to let him in, Taeil walks into the room. The Dreamers all look up, hearing the creak of the door. Their eyes all collectively widens at the sight of Taeil. Jisung moves in front of Jaemin's hunched figure and puts a protective arm on his hyung's leg. Chenle follows and tries to hide Jaemin's weak state.

"What are you doing here Taeil hyung?" Haechan shoots an accusing look in Mark's direction who only raises his hand in surrender before returning his line of sight to Taeil.

"I'm not here to hurt anyone. I just want to talk to Jaemin", Taeil says.

"And how do we know you won't hurt Nana hyung? You already hurt him with your words", Jisung says.

Taeil sighs before he says, "Look, you can stay here and hear what I have to stay if you don't trust me enough but I just want to talk to Jaemin".

"It's fine".

Their heads turn to Jaemin once he says something in a rasped out voice.

"But hyung-" Chenle tries to say but gets cut off with Jaemin's gaze.

"I'll be fine. We're only going to talk. He's our hyung. He won't hurt me", Jaemin says, his voice raspy and low.

Haechan seemed to contemplate Jaemin's words but the look Jaemin gave him was enough. He trusted Jaemin. So, the remaining Dreamers in the room took their leave and left Taeil and Jaemin to talk. Hopefully the both of them end up apologizing and making amends with each other. Mark and Haechan leaves together to get something to eat as they were hungry while Chenle and Jisung decides to take a walk around Neo Zone together. 

"Do you think Jaemin hyung is gonna be okay?" Jisung asks Chenle.

Chenle looks at him, "He will. He's Jaemin hyung. He can take anything and he's got us".

"Yeah I guess you're right".

The both of them walk silently with only their shoes making a sound as it hit the floor with every step they take. They walk aimlessly, with no particular place to go to. Until Jisung said he was getting tired. So, the both of them takes a break and sit on the floor. Chenle never quite liked the silence. He found it unnerving and irritating. Deciding that they at least need something to talk about, he opens up a topic.

"How do you feel about Uncle Min?"

Jisung smiles sadly that it made him feel bad about asking.

"We don't have to talk about it if you don't want to", Chenle quickly says, not wanting to make Jisung feel more sad.

"It's fine Lele. I guess, I'm sad? I don't really know. I just, wanted Papa back, you know? I was really happy when they said the DNA tests came back positive and that he was my Papa but turns out he's our enemy. And he turned Jeno hyung against us so there's that. I haven't really had time to process it, you know? Jaemin hyung needs us most right now".

Jisung's answer was expected for him. Chenle always knew that Jisung was the kind of person to be selfless, always putting others above him. It was the one thing Chenle hated about Jisung. That and his inability to close the door when he leaves the room. He always told Jisung that above everyone, he should prioritize himself but the whisperer was stubborn. 

"You know it's alright feel things, right? You won't go to jail because you're sad Sungie", Chenle says, careful with his words as to not offend the younger.

"I know".

Silence.

Chenle couldn't find the next words to say after that so he let the silelce embrace them. Unlike what Chenle was used to, the silence they shared was comfortable. It didn't feel unnerving and irritating. He thinks it's odd but doesn't dare question it. But then again, everything becomes comfortable when he's with Jisung.

"What's that?"

"Huh?"

Chenle turns his head to look at what Jisung was pointing.

"That".

The both of them got up from their sitting position on the floor and approached the black thing on the opposite wall Jisung was pointing at. They slowly walked in its direction, careful that something might come out of it.

_'It looks like a portal',_ Jisung says in his head.

_'It's like one of those we use for emergency travelling but it's black instead of white',_ he says back to Jisung.

When the both of was a few inches from the portal looking thing, something started coming out of it. The both of them took multiple step backs to avoid the things coming out of it. It looked like people but their skin were burnt and their faces contorted in a way as if it was destroyed and pulled back together messily. It was a horrifying sight for the young Dreamers. 

Chenle's protective instincts kicked in. He puts a protective arm in front of Jisung and shoves the younger behind his back.

"Stay behind me", Chenle says as more started pouring out of the portal.

"Let's run and call for help", Jisung says as he tugs on Chenle's arm.

"No. I can take them", Chenle says.

Jisung looks at him, his eyes had a look of fear in them but the look of determination in Chenle's calmed Jisung just a bit.

_'Trust me',_ Chenle says over their bond.

_'I trust you'._

Chenle nods one time at Jisung before facing the creatures from the portal.

"Give us the whisperer", one of them says in a full groggy voice it made the hairs at the back of Jisung's neck stand.

Chenle clicks his tongue before he says, "You'll have to go through me first".

Chenle and Jisung fought back to back. Applying what they have learned from Jeno in hand-to-hand combat lessons. Punching and kicking the unknown creatures but to no avail, it didn't work. It seemed to not injure or tire the creatures out. If anything, it made them tired. Until Chenle remembered. He has powers. He can kill them at once. 

Taking a deep breathe, he closes his eyes for a second and once he opens them, his irises were red. He tries to drain the life force out of them but nothing happens. He continues to fight them while still trying to drain them of life but absolutely nothing changes. His head snaps when Jisung's voice rings in his head.

_'They don't have a life force Chenle. They're demons'_

_'Well fuck'_

That's when Chenle realized Jisung was right. The burnst skin and smashed faces. That was how demons looked like. Demons didn't have souls for they were drained of them. His power only worked on creatures who had life forces and souls.

Chenle groans when he feels a hard blow at the back of his head. He falls to his knees as his vision blurs and his body grows weak.

"Chenle!"

He hears Jisung scream his name. He tries to turn his head to where Jisung's voice came from only to see the whisperer getting carried by a demon as another opens a portal. He feels himself loosing consciousness and uses his last bit of strength to push out a bit of power and call for Jisung. But it does nothing. And just before he closes his eyes, he sees the absolute horror on Jisung's face that would probably haunt him even in the after life.

  
  


"Have you guys seen Chenle or Jisung?" Haechan asks Yuta and Winwin who just entered the kitchen.

It has been three hours since they left Jaemin to talk to Taeil. The Ace and the Dreamer left Jeno's room in good terms. Bloodshot eyes and red noses but in good terms. Taeil hasn't stopped showering Jaemin with attention and apologies after that it was starting to annoy the younger but Jaemin doesn't have the heart to tell Taeil to stop when the older looked happy with what he was doing. But all of them started to get worried when not a single person has seen the youngest of the Dreamers.

They have checked cameras around Neo Zone, called their phones and tried reaching out through through their bond but they all came up blank.

"No? We just got back from the main building which reminds me. Doyoung is calling for a meeting. He wants all of us", Winwin says.

"But Chenle and Jisung are no where to be found", Jaemin says, worry etched on his whole face.

_'We'll help you look for them',_ Yuta says.

Haechan nods. The four them walks out of the kitchen only to bump into Johnny. They tell him of what was going on and the older joins them on a mission to look for the missing Dreamers. Deciding to split up to cover more ground and find them quickly, they go on separate ways. Seconds turns to minutes as time passed. And it's only when an hour has passed when Yuta finds Chenle lying on the floor of a corridor that leads to the I.O.U., knocked out cold.

The assassin carries the unconscious banshee on his back carefully and calls for the others who were looking for the Dreamers. They take Chenle to the infirmary to get him treated. They wait on the waiting room for the young Dreamer to wake up. Everybody was notified of what happened to Chenle and the Forces inside the tower and Neo Zone were now deployed to look for Jisung. 

They stood up and straightened from their positions once the nurse came out of the room.

"How is he?" Kun asks worriedly.

"He's a bit a shaken but we gave him a light dose of sedative to calm his nerves. He hasn't stopped crying since he woke up. I suggest you don't ask him questions for now so he doesn't go into panic", the nurse says.

"Thank you", Mark says to the nurses.

"It's my job. You can see him now".

They wasted no time and eased into the room where Chenle was. Just as the nurse had said, Chenle was crying when they entered the room. Jaemin's first instinct was to hug the younger. So that's what he does.

"Shhh you're gonna be alright Lele. It's okay. I'm sure Jisung is just asleep somewhere", Jaemin tries to soothe the younger.

But Chenle only cries harder at the mention of Jisung's name.

"No! Jisung!"

"What is it Chenle?" Jaehyun asks, confused.

"They took him!" Chenle cries.

"Who? Jisung?" Hendery asks.

"They took Sungie! I couldn't protect him! I'm such a bad friend!"

"Hey, hey. Don't say that. You're not a bad friend Chenle", Jungwoo says.

"Who took Jisung?" Xiaojun asks.

"The demons! The demons took Sungie to Uncle Min!"

A blanket of silence falls upon the room with only Chenle's uncontrollable sobs echoing in the room. Jisung was now gone. The one person they had to protect was taken. Everything they've been preparing for gone too waste. They felt defeated. What was there to do now?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> two chapters left. well, this one was a beach to write bc of my exams. i hope you guys like it. please cc me :((


	9. Mad City

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "and when the time comes you encounter a fox in the woods, it is best that you befriend them. not go against them"

_"Chenle! Chenle help me!"_

_"Chenle please!"_

"Chenle!"

Jisung jolts awake, screaming Chenle's name. His breathing ragged and his thoughts disoriented, he tries to recognize where he is and what happened after the demons took him away.

_'They got into Neo Zone through a portal. Chenle and I fought them. Chenle tried to use his powers but demons don't have life forces. They knocked Chenle out. I couldn't use my powers to call for someone. They knocked me out'_

Jisung tries to recall the past events.

_'Goddamn it Jisung think! What happened?'_

Jisung fists at his hair and shuts his eyes in concentration, trying to remember what had happened.

_'I couldn't open my eyes but I heard a voice'_

His head began to hurt from forcing himself to remember but he pushed the pain away. He groans in both frustration and pain.

_'Whose voice was it? Jisung think!'_

The pain started to get worse until the young whisperer couldn't take it anymore. He cradles his head in his arms as he curls his body, his head almost in his stomach. His painfilled groans echoed through the empty, cold cell he was in. As the pain slowly subsides and his breathing starts to calm down, his memory starts to paint a clearer picture.

_'Jeno. It was Jeno'_

He straightens up as he hears footsteps approaching. Metals clanked from a distance. Light slowly consumed the dark cell he was in as the door opened, blinding him momentarily. He slowly opens his eyes, letting it adjust to the light that had suddenly appeared. He first makes out figures but as his vision clears, he recognizes the people standing before his cell.

"Finally you're awake".

"Fuck you", Jisung curses at him.

"Now, don't be like that. I'm still your father", Changmin says with a dark chuckle.

"You will never be my father. My papa wouldn't hurt anybody. He died seven years ago in a car accident", his voice strong and gaze intense, he curls his hands to a fist.

"Well I guess it was fun while it lasted", Changmin chuckles once again before he takes a step back.

Jisung sat wide eyed as the person standing in front of his cell started to shed skin. Like a snake growing out of his skin, Changmin does as well. His once appearance of Jisung's father slowly gathering at his feet and evaporating, creating a foul odor made Jisung's nose crinkle in disgust. Once the young whisperer looks up, a look of horror replaces the disgusted look on his face. The man who once looked like his father is no more.

A face of a man, scarred beyond belief and body tattered with shackles at both his feet now stood before his cell.

"You see, Jisung? This is why I need you and of course, to get what I want", the man says, his voice hoarse.

Jisung trembles in fear and curls himself in a ball as he avoids eye contact with the creature.

"W-who are you? Why me?" the whisperer asks, stumbling upon his words.

The man with the scarred face only chuckles darkly before he replies, "I think you know who I am Jisung. As to the why, well, a villain shall not reveal his master plans to the enemy shall he not? But I’m sure you’ll never get out of here so I might as well tell you. Well you see Jisung, I plan to take over the world. Oh sorry, I meant worlds."

“But I can only do that with you. You see, I know every flaw, every advantage of your ability and I plan to use it until you are stripped off of it. You’re not worthy of it anyway. You’re just a little boy. Small minded and weak”.

His last words pierced through Jisung’s chest like shards of glass. It hurt but the young whisperer shook it off as best as he could. He needs not to dwell on a person’s words who do not matter.

"I'll leave you with your old friend. I'm sure you have things to talk about".

As the man takes his leave, his shackles cluttered after him. Still shaken up, Jisung pits himself at the corner of his cell and bows his head. Lost in his thoughts, trying to calm himself down, he fails to notice his cell door opening and a person slipping in. Only when that person touches him that he looks up and shoves the hand away.

"Get out. I don't need you here", the young dreamer says, his tone icy despite the evident fear.

Jeno sighs, sits opposite from him and holds Jisung's hand despite the younger's protests. The older starts to massage the younger's hand as Jisung starts to calm down.

"Are you okay?" Jeno asks quietly.

Jisung lets out a sarcastic laugh before he replies, "Am I okay? Do you hear yourself? I'm inside a fucking cell, that thing just made me believe he's my father, Chenle's probably hurt and to add a cherry on top, you betrayed us and killed Taeyong hyung. I'm loving everything that has happened. Yes! I'm feeling fucking fantastic!"

Jisung's outburst almost shocks Jeno. Almost.

Jeno knew they would be angry- no. He knew they would be furious at him. In their eyes, his actions aren't valid nor can he justify them just yet. But some things had to be done.

"Look, Jisung. I can explain or you can curse at me. You can do that, I won't mind but please just, listen", Jeno sighs.

"Listen? Listen to what? To your bullshit? Oh then please do explain what made you betray years of our friendship and everyone's trust".

Jeno's patience was dwindling by the second but he tried his best to calm down. He understood the rage coming from Jisung but it didn't mean he wasn't getting angry as well.

"Just so you know, I'm not going to believe anything that comes out of your mouth but go on".

"Do you have your crystal?"

"What?"

Confused, the younger looks at the older who had the look of determination on his face.

"Our friendship crystal", Jeno replies.

"What does that have to do with any of this?" Jisung asks.

"Remember when Haechan gave it to us? What he said?"

"Of course I do. When one of us is in danger, it turns black. When one of us betrays our friendship, it causes a crack in the crystal and the person's crystal who betrays us will turn to powder. I still don't get where you're going with this".

Jeno looks at the outside of the cell to make sure nobody was looking and takes out a necklace hidden in his shirt. He showed it to Jisung which made the younger's eyes widen. Hurriedly turning over his hand, he peers at the bracelet on his wrist and looks at it carefully. Once he gets a good look, he gapes at Jeno. His crystal didn't have a crack or anything. At all.

"How- wha-? why? You-? I'm honestly so confused right now".

Jisung didn't know what to think or do. His crystal should be damaged or have a scratch. Just anything. And Jeno's should be powdered. Gone. Vanished. Not there anymore because of what he did.

"I didn't betray you Sungie", Jeno says in a hushed whisper.

"But Jaeminie hyung thinks- and Taeyong hyung. You killed Taeyong hyung!" JIsung screams at Jeno with tears escaping his eyes, punching the older.

Jeno took a hold of Jisung's fist, stopping the younger and hugging him as Jisung sobbed into his chest.

"Calm down Ji. Shh it's alright".

Sniffling, Jisung pushes Jeno away from him which makes the older sigh.

"I didn't Sungie".

"You didn't what?" asked Jisung.

"I didn't kill Taeyong".

Jisung laughs at his face, sarcastically, "Yeah and I'm not stuck in a cell with you".

"Jisung".

"Stop lying to me!"

"I'm not Ji!" Jeno says to him, his voice just a little bit louder than normal before and holds Jisung's arm tightly, forcing a memory on the younger's mind to see.

  
  


🌑

  
  


The sun shone brightly up in the sky while some clouds offered shade for the nctzens that littered the streets of Division U. Nothing was out of the ordinary. Children played at the playgrounds, office people clamored at the coffee shops and subway stations, students rushed to catch their buses. It was all normal until it wasn't.  
Domes of lava emerged from beneath the ground and flowed into the streets of Division U as people started to run. As the lava flowed freely, figures formed through them. Demons. People screamed in fear as they ran for their lives. Cars turned the other way in an attempt to escape the horde of demons blasting lava left and right.

”We interrupt this program for a breaking news from Division U. Domes of lava have erupted from the ground up and demons have resurfaced the earth. Forces are now being deployed by the council. Stay tuned for more updates”

Hendery’s blood ran cold at the sudden news on the television. His mind raced a thousand mile per hour as fear crept at every core of his body. His pupils shaking, he turns to leave his room and tell the others of the news. His hand has only touched the door knob when the door suddenly swings open harshly, banging his figure in the process.

“Oh shit! I’m so sorry, are you alright?” Xiaojun apologizes as he steadies Hendery from wobbling.

“I’m fine”.

Hendery chuckles and stands upright.

“What were you doing behind the door?” Xiaojun asks.

“I was about to go out dumbass”, the socialite answers which reminds him of his intentions of going out.

Hendery looks at Xiaojun, an alarmed look on his face.

“Have you seen the news?” he asks.

“That’s why I’m here. Doyoung wants everyone at the I.O.U.” Xiaojun replies.

The two of them wasted little to no time as they ran down the halls of Neo Zone to the I.O.U. where everybody was waiting. Once there, they take a seat with the others and only then they realize they aren’t the only one’s present. The governor’s council and Head of Forces are there too.

“We’ve already deployed a number of our men sir. All divisions of the country are covered. We expect for the worse”

“We’ve alerted nctzens to evacuate to their resident bunkers for their safety. The ones that are out in the open are being escorted by the Forces''.

“Doyoung we need a statement from the governor as soon as possible. He’s commander-in-chief. We can’t fully mobilize without him. If we don’t take actions now, we’ll be wiped out in no time. There are demons out there”.

Silence.

Everybody froze at that moment. No one dared to speak nor move. That millisecond of silence felt like an entire lifetime for them. The air hangs with heavy tension.

“Kim?” a councilman calls for the advisor as Doyoung snaps his head in the council’s direction.

"We'll issue a statement. The governor, Neos and Forces will take it from here council", Doyoung's tone was cold.

It was the kind of statement that left no room for argument but the council people didn't seem to get the hint for they pressed the advisor for more answers.

"When Kim? We need a statement now", one of them said.

"I know and the governor is ready. So let me do my job and leave", Doyoung snaps with his eyes narrowed at the councils' direction. The council bowed their heads in submission and left the room without a sound while everybody else turned to Doyoung in confusion.

"What do you mean the governor is ready Doyoung?" Kun asks but his question was not answered, only set aside.

Instead, Doyoung nods at the Force Commander as he nods back. Everybody glanced at Doyoung and the Force Commander, puzzled. The commander only says something to his communicator before saluting at Doyoung and taking his leave. Just as the commander exits the door, the entryway on the opposite side of the room opens. The Neos froze on their seat with perplexed and petrified expressions as if they just saw a ghost.

With whoever was crossing the threshold, their reactions were acceptable. Lee Taeyong has just entered the room, alive, in a completely healthy condition.

“Well fuck me”, Johnny mumbles under his breathe but the silence made his voice echo through the room.

Taeyong chuckles before he says, “I’d rather not Johns. Ten wouldn’t like that either”.

His joke wasn’t received well. If anything, the Neos stared at him, bewildered. 

“Taeyong”, Taeil calls.

“That’s me. I’m Taeyong”, the governor says.

“How are you alive?” Mark asks.

“You’d rather me six feet under? Feeling the love Minhyung”, Taeyong jokes and Mark only chokes on his own spit at his answer.

“No! That’s not what I meant. The last time I saw you, you were bleeding out. Badly. So how are you alive? The doctor even said you were gone”, Mark says.

“I’ll explain once everyone of us is here”.

Confused, they look at each other with questioning gazes. 

“We’re all here though?” Winwin says.

“Oh! We’re missing two more people”, Taeyong says.

“Sir we’re sorry to say this but Jisung was taken”, Chenle says, a forlorn expression on his face.

“And Jeno, sir he betrayed us”, Jaemin’s voice breaks at his statement.

Amused, Taeyong looks at them before he says, “right”.

Just as he said that, Jeno and Jisung entered the room from where Taeyong just made his way in moments ago, out of breath.

“How- wha- what the fuck?!” Yangyang exclaims.

“One moment”, Jeno holds up a finger, still trying to catch his breath.

“How’d you get here? Jisung, come here! Who knows what he might’ve planned”, Renjun says.

The young whisperer seemed torn but once Jeno ushered him with his hand, he complied. Renjun stood in front of Jisung, an attempt to protect the younger. Jeno walks over to where Taeyong and Doyoung stood, the governor hugging him and the advisor nodding at him in acknowledgement.

“Someone explain what’s going on before I completely lose my mind”, Taeil says.

“We don’t have much time. We’ll show you everything. Jisung, if you please”, Taeyong gestures.

The whisperer nods and looks at Haechan, as if asking permission and only when the trickster nods does he opens his mind to everyone in the room, letting them access a certain memory Jeno showed him before.

_Taeyong stands quietly in the dark kitchen alone, as he watches Changmin talk on the phone with someone he has yet to find out. The DNA test came back positive, assuring them he was indeed Jisung’s father. But something came along with the test. The test showed that he possessed supernatural DNA which means only one thing: he wasn’t who he says he was. Only one thing can get past a DNA test positive and that’s a shapeshifter. Taeyong was almost sure Changmin was that. ___

_He watches the impostor quietly when someone suddenly enters the kitchen; Lucas. The hacker hides behind a wall. The governor almost chuckles when he sees Jungwoo creeping behind him. As the mechanic taps Lucas to grab his attention, Lucas screams in surprise which startles Changmin and hurriedly exits the kitchen undetected. Taeyong watches as the Ace and Visionary run out of the kitchen._

_"Lee Jeno"._

_Doyoung's voice echoed through the quiet shooting range that made everybody turn to him._

_"The governor wants to see you", the sternness in Doyoung's voice made everyone straighten up._

_"What? I'm not the one being an asshole", Jeno glared at Renjun as he said the last words who still had his head down._

_"I didn't ask anything. Come with me. Now" Doyoung's command was so strong that he had no choice but to obey._

_Sighing, he looks at Haechan and gestures to Jaemin. Nodding, Haechan approaches the younger who now looks up._

_"I'm not a child Jen. I can take care of myself", he says in silent sniffles._

_Jeno only smiled at him and turned to Doyoung with a straight face, following after the older who led the way out of the training grounds. They walked silently through the halls of Neo Zone and rode the elevator without a word exchanged between them. Jeno was still angry at how Renjun treated Jaemin and now he was being summoned by the governor, probably for punching the young assassin but he couldn’t care less. He did what he had to do._

_”Take a seat Jeno”, Taeyong says, all calm and collected._

_Jeno grumbled slightly before sitting heavily on the chair._

_”Why am I here?” he asks._

_Taeyong sighs before saying, “I need your help”._

_The Dreamer was confused at first but as the governor explained what for and what he needed to do, he grew appalled. He didn’t understand quite well. If they already knew, why didn’t they just take him, right then and there and get it over and done with? What was stopping them?_

_”Because, he already started and we can’t command his minions as there are thousands of them. The only thing we can do is wait and prevent him from taking Jisung”, Taeyong responds._

_That’s another thing that’s been bothering Jeno. What did they want Jisung for?_

_So, Taeyong tells him._

_”You see Jeno, Jisung is a rare one. Whisperers come every thousands of years. His abilities can and will develop to be the most powerful ability over time. If you think Jaemin had it bad with the bounty hunters and assassins, then you won’t imagine what we had to do to keep Jisung safe. We lost so many people trying to protect him. That’s why we took him in at such a young age. As of now, he can hear, see, share images and memories but as he grows and trains more, he will be able to speak to the dead, be a medium for people like Winwin; people who have telekinesis. He will be able to travel through dimensions. That’s how powerful Jisung will become and that is why we are shielding him away from the world”._

_With that explained, Taeyong tells Jeno of what he was really there for. Their plan. That day, Jeno returns to Neo Zone with a cloudy mind. He tried his best to act normal and seeing no one growing suspicious, he thinks he succeeded._

_That very next day the governor revealed to Jeno the next step to his plan, he traveled to Ahga State to see Park Jinyoung; Jisung’s uncle. He seeked him in an attempt to find out how to kill demons that are under Changmin’s commands._

_”So you’re telling me, someone shapeshifted into my brother but is actually a royal demon’s spawn with legions of demons under his command and is after Jisung? What the fuck is going on in your country Lee?” Jinyoung’s eyes filled with rage at the thought of someone as a filthy demon taking the shape of his deceased brother and is out to abduct his nephew._

_Taeyong sighs as he says, “Look, I came to you because I know you know how. I’ve kept my promise for years of keeping Jisung safe and I don’t intend on stopping. He’s a Dreamer now. Soon he’ll be a Neo”._

_Jinyoung looks at him in disbelief. The determined look in his eyes only made Jinyoung sigh in defeat._

_”Caratland has a mineral that can eliminate soulless creatures. I don’t know what it's called or how you can get it but a friend of mine has someone who resides in Caratland so you’re lucky. I’ll contact you once I have it and send it to you immediately”._

_”Thank you, Jinyoung. Neo City owes Ahga State now”._

_It took a week before Jinyoung contacted Taeyong and delivered what the governor had asked for. Before the mineral had arrived, the Neos underwent training with Jeno constantly slipping out of it when moments called for it so Taeyong could update him of what was happening. Sometimes, Taeyong was so busy that Doyoung was the one who talked to Jeno. It went on for days before one time, when Jeno was on the way up to Taeyong’s office that he felt like he was being followed._

_And indeed he was. Haechan has been growing suspicious of him for days now but the trickster kept it at the back of his mind. But the consistency of Jeno’s actions had triggered Haechan’s senses that it couldn’t be something he could ignore anymore. So, once Jeno left the training grounds one morning, the trickster tried to follow him as discreetly as possible but given the Dreamer’s abilities, Jeno knew he was being followed._

_“I know you’re there. If you want your bones intact then I suggest you come out and tell me why you’re following me”, Jeno had threatened only for him to hear a chuckle as a reply._

_”Man nothing ever gets past you. Well, it was worth a shot”, Haechan says nonchalantly and walks up to Jeno, slides his arm over the older’s shoulder and smiled at him cheekily._

_”You better tell me where you’re going though. You’ve been leaving in the middle of training since Taeyong hyung called for you the day you punched Renjun. What goes on?”_

_If Jeno was surprised, it didn’t show. But honestly, he wasn’t surprised that much. Nothing could get past Haechan. That’s just how he was. He was so observant it was scary. So instead of telling him directly, he took Haechan with him. While the trickster bugged him all the way until they were at the governor’s office, he tried to think of how he could explain to Taeyong that Haechan had caught him slipping out of training. But once there, it turns out, he didn’t need to. Taeyong and Doyoung had already planned to get help from Haechan._

_However, the next words to come out of Haechan’s mouth was not what they expected. They knew the trickster had a knack for theatrics but not to the extent of what he was suggesting. But then again, foxes were sly and cunning so you expect the unexpected. Always._

_The plan was to let Jeno come to Changmin and let the impostor think the Dreamer was betraying the others. The reason being Jeno didn’t want to serve a government who exploited their skills and abilities but rather rule the world. It was the perfect excuse. It was believable enough that Changmin had no second thoughts and let Jeno team up with him right away. To ensure Jeno’s safety, Taeyong had Xiaojun make Jeno a weapon from the mineral they got from Caratland. Just something that could be easily concealed but powerful enough to kill a demon silently. To avoid suspicion, they made thousands of replicas from weapons to bullet and arrow coatings with Taeil’s help. It was the perfect cover up. The Ace and Visionary just thought it was a precaution for the fight to come. Indeed it was but there was more to the story._

_During one of their secret meetings, Haechan had suddenly bursted with a ridiculous idea. Jeno kills Taeyong. They looked at him like he grew a tail but the trickster was determined. Says it was to make the lie believable. So the enemy doesn’t suspect anything. Of course he had a foolproof plan already. Put everybody under an illusion. Taeyong’s death would be nothing but an illusion created by him. With little argument, it was decided right there and then._

_Taeyong sighs at the neat stack of paper on his desk.He read files after files and signed papers after papers. By the time it was dinner time, he was exhausted. A knock on his door made him look up. The knock he had been waiting for since he sat down on his office._

_"Come in"._

_The door swung open to reveal his advisor. An unreadable expression on his face. Though he dared not comment on it._

_"Dinner's ready", Doyoung says._

_"What time is it?" he asks, fixing himself._

_"Just in time for you to dine with the others", Doyoung answers._

_Taeyong rolls his eyes at that, fully understanding what the advisor was getting at._

_"I told you I could help"._

_"And I told you I could do it on my own. Besides, you are going to help. You’ll be crying for my death", he replies to his stubborn advisor._

_"As well as Taeil and everyone else. Very funny right? Yeah whatever. They're waiting for you in Neo Zone", Doyoung says._

_The two of them rode the elevator down to Neo Zone in silence. After a few moments, they arrived. Taking their time, the both of them walked to the dining area. Once there, they were greeted by everyone already sitting down. Once they saw him and his advisor, everybody got up and bowed. Urging them to take a seat, he made his way to the head of the table._

_Taeyong stood at the head of the table, holding a wine glass, proposing a toast as everyone turned their attention to him._

_"I'd like to thank each and every one of you. For working hard and giving your all to defend our country. I hope we will be as united as now till the end. Cheers!"_

_"Cheers!"_

_As everybody drank from their glasses, their heads whipped in their governor's direction as they heard a glass shattering and a groan. The plan was now in full motion. Taeyong's glass fell from his hands, a pained expression on his face. As their governor fell to the ground, they saw Jeno, holding a bloody knife in his hand. Before anyone could make a move or recover from shock, Jisung's father had already snatched Jeno's body and disappeared from the scene._

As if they relived that dreadful night, they were pulled out of the memory with tears streaming down their faces. 

“All this time, you were alive? And, Haechan, you knew? Doyoung knew? Why?” Taeil’s voice cracks whilst Taeyong’s gaze soften at the broken down expression on Taeil’s face. 

Haechan sighs, “It was to make sure we were going to win this fight hyung. You know everything I do is for us. I never use my abilities unless I really need to. I promised you guys after what happened last time”. 

“Now that everything is clear, we need to make a move before Changmin notices Jisung and I are gone”, Jeno says. 

“So what’s the plan of action?” Kun asks. 

“Lucas, Yangyang, Haechan, Doyoung and Jisung are going to be working from here. You four are going to be watching from the control system with Jisung. We can’t risk putting Jisung on the field. Jisung, keep your bond clear with Renjun and Yuta. They’re going to be sniping that motherfucker who wants you. Winwin and Jungwoo will cover the road to 127. Taeil and Xiaojun will be in the air with Kun leading the squadron. Ten, Hendery and Jaehyun will be covering the road to Dream. Johnny, Mark and Jaemin will cover the road to Vision. Chenle and Jeno will be with me here in U”. 

Doyoung was confused. That wasn’t what they planned.

“That wasn’t part of the plan Yong. We agreed on you staying with us”, Doyoung said. 

“I agree with Doyoung. We also can’t risk you going out there and getting killed. We must protect you”, Taeil says. 

Taeyong scoffs at that. 

“I don’t plan on sitting down while my people fight battles when I’m fully capable of helping. I’m commander-in-chief and I plan to put my years of training to good use”. 

With the tone of both determination and finality, there were no rooms for more arguments. Taeyong was going out there to defend his people, his country, and nobody could stop him. Nobody. 

All Doyoung could do was heavily sigh. 

“All right, let’s get this show on the road!” 

Johnny had enthusiastically said and clapped twice, ushering everybody out. Once out of the I.O.U., they made their way to the main area of Neo Zone. They were putting on their gear and preparing when Yangyang noticed Xiaojun looking around nervously like he wanted to say something but opted not to. So, he asks him. 

“What’s wrong hyung?” 

“I uh- I made something for you guys”, Xiaojun says quietly. 

Everybody looked at him, confused. 

“Well, I made you guys personalized weapons that you could use with the minerals that came from Caratland. When I was making it for Jeno, there was so much of it left and Taeil already made a whole bunch of coatings for the bullets so I thought that maybe it would be great to use it rather than have it lay around. Wait for a moment”, Xiaojun said as he pressed a button that revealed a whole wall lined up with weapons they had never seen before. 

The weapons specialist begins to hand each of the weapons to the person he had built it for as everybody received with so much adoration in their eyes. 

“Wow Dejun that’s- that’s so nice of you. How did you even have the time?” Jungwoo asks, incredibly amazed.  
“After that miserable night, I cooped myself up at the forge. I didn’t know what else to do so I made these for you guys. I thought that if we were going to lose and die, at least I did everything I could to help and save us”, Xiaojun says. 

Everybody stood amazed and quite saddened at what he had said. 

“Thank you Dejun. We appreciate it”, Jaehyun says as the younger beamed at him. 

“Okay but what does this thing do? It’s so lit-” 

“Woah!” 

Chenle’s sudden outburst had interrupted Jaemin’s question but mainly because when Jaemin pressed something on the sword handle looking thing Xiaojun had handed to him, it suddenly springed into a double bladed sword. Jaemin looks at it with his mouth agape and eyes wide. 

“That’s some star wars shit”, Lucas exclaims. 

“The fuck is a star wars?” Taeil asks the tech hack, confusion in his face. 

“Nevermind that. That’s so cool nana hyung”, Jisung says as he gazes at the weapon Jaemin was holding. 

“How’d you think of making this? This is so cool!” Jaemin exclaims, now being able to express his excitement. 

“Well, it’s suited for you because you're fast as hell and it’s lightweight too. So you just slash as you go and they won’t even see you coming. Quite literally”, Xiaojun says, his chest swelling with pride as the others marveled over Jaemin’s weapon. 

“Alright! break it up everybody! Time is ticking, we gotta move!” Mark says in a loud booming voice. 

Everybody disperses and goes to the person they were teamed with whilst Lucas, Yangyang, Haechan, Doyoung and Jisung made their way to the control system. 

“Taeil hyung come on!” Xiaojun calls for Taeil who stood still, not making any signs of moving. Xiaojun calling for the Ace leader grabbed Taeyong’s attention who looked back. Sighing, he tells Chenle and Jeno to go before him with a promise to rush and catch up within a moment. 

The governor makes his way to where Taeil stood in the middle of the room and without an exchange of words, he captures his lips. Shocked by the sudden action, Taeil stood frozen and wide eyed at Taeyong before his head registered what was happening and finally eased into the moment. Only when Taeyong broke the kiss that they could finally breathe. Chasing his breath and his eyes still closed, savoring the moment, Taeyong leaned their foreheads together. Once Taeil opens his eyes, he sees Taeyong’s smile that almost made his knees give away. 

“Be safe out there alright?” the older whispers. 

“Always”. 

With that, they broke off and went their separate ways. 

“That was disgusting to watch”, Kun comments jokingly. 

“You could’ve closed your eyes Qian”, Taeil shots at him making the pilot chuckle. 

“Whatever. Let’s go, the whole fleet is ready to fly”, Kun says as they made their way to where the aircrafts with the other pilots and soldiers were waiting for their command. 

_’Can you guys hear me well?’_ Jisung’s voice rings through their minds. 

_’Loud and clear’_

_’Very much so’_

Came the replies of everyone. 

_’Alright Kun. Take it to the air’_ , says Doyoung through the bond. 

“Man your battlestations!” came Kun’s voice which echoed through the room because of the megaphone. 

One by one, the platforms that carried the aircrafts started to ascend and break through the ground which lead to the runway just behind the Neo City tower. As they began to climb with Kun leading the squadron, Xiaojun looked at the monitor which made them able to see what was happening on the ground. He saw hordes of demons littering the streets, blocking the roads, cars on fire and unfortunate civilians who lied dead on the ground. 

Kun gave his commands through the communicator as they began their formation. 

Renjun and Yuta rode with Jungwoo and Winwin who were on the way to 127 via Winwin’s powers. As they hovered over the building Changmin claimed as his, they said their goodbyes to one another. 

“Be safe you guys. Cover for each other”, Jungwoo says as the two assassins smiled and hugged the both of them. 

Much to their surprise, Yuta responded in his own voice. 

“We will”. 

Like a fish out of water, Jungwoo gaped at him. 

“Y-You can talk? Hyung oh my god!” exclaimed Renjun. 

Winwin and Yuta chuckles at their reaction. 

“I told you they would be like this”, Winwin says to a smiling Yuta. 

“I’ll tell you all about it later. Good luck you guys”, Yuta says as they jumped off of the levitating piece of cement. 

Renjun and Yuta watched as the two of them zoomed away. 

“You have to tell me how you got your voice back”, Renjun says to him which only made the older assassin chuckle. 

“I’ll tell you and everybody else once we finish this shitshow”. 

“Deal”. 

_’Jisung you ready?’_ Yuta asks, his voice ringing inside Jisung’s head. 

_’The fly is inside. I’m still trying to find Changmin but this fly is so stubborn’_ , ' came the voice of the young whisperer. 

_’Let us know when you see him alright? We shoot him down, his entire legions of demon will fall down’_

_’Will do hyung’_

Ten, Hendery and Jaehyun were on the way to Dream when they were intercepted by demons. They got out of the car with their weapons on hand and Forces behind them. 

“Kill them all!” screamed Jaehyun as they began shooting at the demons running up to them. Katana held tightly in his hands, Hendery slashed blindly at every creature that came at him while Ten shot at them until their bodies were full of holes. Standing back to back, the three of them fought and covered each other whilst the other reloaded.

_’Ten on your three!’_

Hendery had yelled through the bond but the demon had already slashed at Ten’s back which made the seer hiss in pain. Turning right, he shot straight at the demon’s head until it blew off, splattering it’s exploded skull on his face. 

“That fucking hurt”, Ten mumbled under his breath. 

_’You alright hyung?’_ Jaehyun asked through the link. 

Ten only chuckled at him and smirked. That was enough assurance for the younger that the seer was fine. Because if he was not? Oh boy, he was going to get an earful from Johnny. 

Johnny drove the shuttle whilst Mark and Jaemin rode in the backseat, loading some ammunition to their guns. Thanks to Jaemin, the three of them had managed to get to Vision without being noticed. Once at the boundary, they alerted the Forces to be ready. 

It took only a couple more minutes before they made it in. And the fight had already started. 

“Where did they all come from?” Mark exclaims, bewildered at the number of demons running at them. 

“Hell obviously”, Johnny replies to the young Ace, sarcastically making Jaemin chuckle. 

_’We’re losing a lot of men hyung. Maybe more action and less talking for you guys?’_ Haechan said through the bond. 

_’Chill babe. We got this’_ , came Mark’s reply. 

_’Please refrain from flirting through the link. Some of us have ours open’,_ Kun’s voice sounded through their head that made everybody that could hear chuckle. 

Johnny tucked the knives in his thighs and a pistol on his leg while he checked the ammunition of his uzi and Mark did the same. Jaemin was the only one who wielded a sword. Wasting no more time, Jaemin jumped off of the shuttle and swung and sliced at the demons while Johnny and Mark shot at them from the moving shuttle. Yangyang drove the shuttle Johnny and Mark was riding all the way from Neo Zone's control system so that the two Aces could do their job conveniently. Shooting with both their hands on each sides of the shuttle, Mark and Johnny was able to kill almost half of the horde of demons on the ground while Jaemin and the Forces took care of the remaining on foot.

Johnny and Mark went down on the ground, seeing that there were only a few of them left. In no time, they were able to kill all of the demons in Vision. Remains and dirt on their clothes and skin, they approached the commander.

"Did we get every single one chief?" Johnny asks.

"Yes sir. We only got about half of a thousand here. There's more in U but we lost almost a quarter of our men".

Johnny sighs at that. That's something he could never get accustomed to. No matter their plan, there will always be casualties. They are at war after all.

"I assume you will take care of this, yeah? We'll send condolences and donations to their families like we always do. We'll be going now" said Johnny.

The commander only salutes as Johnny, Mark and Jaemin turns to leave on the shuttle they boarded to get to Vision.

Jungwoo shot arrows continuously at every demon he could see. Every arrow that hit the demons cluttered to the ground as they evaporated. Forces shot them down while Winwin opened up the earth and sent them back to where they came from. It took so much of Winwin's energy that by the time they killed every last one, the Visionary was close to fainting. 

"Are you okay hyung?" asked a worried Jungwoo.

Winwin could only weakly smile before his eyes rolled back into his skull and faints, just in time for Jungwoo to catch him in his arms. The Ace calls for the commander to alert him that he was going back to U. 

"I'm going back to U . Take care of everything else here chief".

The commander only salutes to Jungwoo before the Ace lays Winwin on the backseat of the car and he climbs on the driver seat and drives off. His foot on the accelerator and hands on the steering wheel, he constantly checks to see if the Visionary has woken and only then he remembers that he has to tell the people back at Neo Zone they were coming back. 

_'Doyoung hyung?',_ he calls through the bond.

 _'Jungwoo is everything alright?'_ came Doyoung voice almost immediately.

 _'Yeah we took care of everything at 127 but Winwin hyung fainted. I think he used up almost his energy so I'm driving us back to U',_ said the Ace.

 _'Okay. We'll be ready for you. Be ready for possible ambush alright? Chenle, Jeno and Taeyong hasn't got back on us and we haven't caught them in the system'_.

 _'Will do hyung',_ with that, he cuts the link and steps on the accelerator a lot harder, making the car speed past the road.

"Yangyang keep tabs on Jungwoo. He's driving to us. Winwin fainted", Doyoung says as he watches every monitor in the control system of Neo Zone. Haechan and Lucas looks at each other alarmed as Jisung sips on water to keep himself calm and his mind clear.

"Is he okay?" asks Haechan, his face contorted in a worried expression.

"He's fine. Drained out of energy but fine".

Lucas could only sigh in relief for a millisecond for the moments he trained his eyes back on the monitor he was watching just a second ago, it was glitching.

"Uh Doyoung? You might want to see this", Lucas gestures at the screen for the adviser to see.

What Doyoung saw, made him gasp in disbelief.

"Hyung something's wrong. I can't connect to either Renjun or Yuta hyung. The link won't work", Jisung says from behind Doyoung.

When he gets no response, the whisperer tries to get the advisor's attention.

"Hyung?"

Jisung looks at Doyoung and Lucas' frozen state in confusion and only when he looks at the screen they were looking at that he realizes why.

Renjun and Yuta lay motionless atop of the building with both their weapons at the side of them as demons dragged the two unconscious boys off the cemented rooftop and inside the building.

Haechan aggressively taps Jisung and says, "connect to Jeno or anybody in U. Get them out there oh my god".

Jisung snaps himself back to reality at Haechan's commands and does as he's told. Despite his attempts to link through Jeno, Chenle and Taeyong, he couldn't.

"I can't hyung. It's not working", Jisung says.

"Fuck",

"Where are you Yong?" Doyoung mumbles under his breath.

Taeyong signals for them to stay quiet and as both Jeno and Chenle nod, the three of them slips into the building Changmin has claimed as his unnoticed. Stabbing a demon standing by, they quickly made their way up only for Jeno to pull Taeyong and Chenle's arm to his side once he noticed two demons coming their way. As they hide behind a wall, they peep slightly to see where they're going and what they see shocks them.

Yuta and Renjun's unconscious forms being dragged by two demons across the tiled floor.

"What the fuck happened?" Jeno whispers to Chenle only for the banshee to shrug.

"Chenle try again if you can link to Jisung", Taeyong says to the younger.

After they went out of Neo Zone and into the streets of U, the mind link with Jisung had suddenly stopped working. Taeyong reckons it has something to do with Changmin but he isn't sure. With no possible communication with their members back in Neo Zone and the building mobbed with demons, they had to improvise.

"Still nothing", Chenle whispers to the governor.

Taeyong could only sigh. The three of them walk quietly through the building trying to go unnoticed. As they turn the corner, they come face to face with the one person they were trying to avoid.

"Ah what a pleasant surprise. I was starting to think you weren't coming", Changmin says, an evil smile on his face.

Well, as much as his distorted face could smile.

"Call off your demons", Taeyong had suddenly said.

Changmin chuckles darkly and clicks his tongue. Chenle and Jeno narrow their eyes at him.

"So demanding. Just a month ago you were welcoming me", Changmin mocks.

The governor glares at him.

"Jeno! You're here too I see. I admit I got a bit mad when I realized you played me and got Jisung out. But you're here now so", Changmin nods once and just like that, two demons seizes Chenle and Jeno by the arm but the two of them stab them just as they touched them.

"Very promising skills. Maybe I'll turn you into demons too".

"Never", Chenle spat at him.

Changmin wipes the spit off his face and looks at Chenle with a deranged expression.

"Well that was unrevolutionary. Coffee?"

Just as he said that, the two Dreamers dropped to the ground unconscious. Taeyong's glare intensifies as he sees the two of them get dragged off.

"Don't look at me like that. We ought to talk don't you think?"

Changmin chuckles but is cut short when Taeyong suddenly points a gun at him.

"You're no fun. But I guess we can skip the talk and coffee".

With his hands, the demon spawn creates a spear and points it at the fuming governor. No further words exchanged, Taeyong pulls the trigger at him but the spawn only tilts his head to avoid the bullet. The two of them exchange shots of bullets and rain of spears. Rolling to the side, jumping to avoid each other's hit. Changmin hisses as a bullet scrapes his leg. As he is hurt, Taeyong doesn't miss a beat and fires a round of bullets at him, hitting his chest and abdomen.

The governor expects the demon's spawn to drop dead, evaporate or just anything that will ensure him that he is dead but Changmin only chuckles with that same insane expression all across his distorted face.

"You tried dear governor. But I'm not that easy", Changmin says as he slashes at both of Taeyong's legs making the governor fall to his knees in pain as blood splatters to the floor. The devil's spawn rids him off of his weapons and commands his minions to take him.

Just as he gets dragged off the tiled floor, he hears a voice in his head.

_'Hyung? Can you hear me? Are you there?'_

_'Jisung?'_

_'Yeah! Oh my god I've been trying since forever'_

_'He cut off our connections. They have Yuta, Renjun, Chenle and Jeno unconscious. I don't have much time so listen carefully. Tell everybody to come to U. Get rid of as much demons. Tell Jaemin he can get us out of here. He's the only one who can come in and out undetected'_

Taeyong grunts as he starts to feel the pain in his legs.

_'Jisung? DId you get that?'_

_'Jisung?'_

The governor groans in frustration as he realizes the link is lost again and he slips out of the land of consciousness.

"It's almost time. Get ready", Kun's voice sounds through the speakers of the aircraft. Taeil and Xiaojun gets on their feet and faces the number of soldiers who were now on high alert.

"Formations in 4".

"Engines hot".

In under four minutes, the whole squadron had achieved formation under Kun's command. As the soldier aboard each aircraft double checks their gear to get ready to fly, Taeil and Xiaojun hands them their weapons. 

"Alright soldiers, ready to dive?" asks Taeil with a loud voice.

"Sir yes sir!" the soldiers aboard chorused.

"You ready DJ?" Taeil asks the younger.

"I'm a Visionary. I will always be ready".

Taeil smiles at Xiaojun. Kun's voice is heard through the intercoms saying that they were dropping in five. The soldiers stood up and lined up. Once the shaft opens, they each grab a rifle and a loader. One by one, the soldiers jumped out of the plane.

"You think it's gonna work?" Xiaojun asks, worried.

"We can only hope", Taeil replies.

And they watch through the monitor demons on the ground slowly lose number as the soldiers fire at them.

Yuta awoke with a start. Groaning and clutching his head, he looks around. His eyes widen as his eyes connect with Renjun, Chenle and Jeno's unconscious form across from his. Shaking the three Dreamers awake immediately, he hears them grunt. Once the Dreamers see him, they sit upright.

"Yuta hyung! Where's Taeyong hyung?" Chenle asks.

Yuta looks at him confused, "what do you mean where's Taeyong hyung? I should be asking you that. You three were supposed to be together".

"We were but- wait you can talk?" Jeno gawks at him.

"I'll explain later", Yuta brushes the question off.

"I don't know what happened. All I remember is that fucker asking if we wanted coffee and then blank", Jeno continues.

"He offered coffee? What the fuck?" came Renjun's groggy vice.

"Never mind that now. We need to find a way to get out of here", Yuta says as he tries to link with Jisung. Seeing this, Chenle sighs.

"That won't work. As soon as we got out of Neo Zone, we couldn't link with anyone", the banshee says.

Their heads whip to Jeno's direction when they hear a clutter to the ground and discover it was the chain that bound the doors of the cell they were imprisoned in. With a gesture of his head, the other three stood up and hurriedly left the cell to look for their governor. It doesn't take a long time for as soon as they exit their cell, they see Taeyong's unconscious body laying across from them in darkness.

Pulling at the cell as hard as he could, Jeno throws it to the ground as soon as it gives in while the other three stand behind him, astounded. Renjun notices the blood pooling at his legs and looks at the wound and as soon as he touches it, Taeyong's eyes flashes open and hisses in pain.

"Sorry hyung", Renjun apologizes.

"That's fine. But we need to get out of here. I already told Jisung to call everybody", Taeyong says as he stands up with Yuta's help.

"How?" asked the banshee.

"I don't know. Changmin probably had a moment of weakness that he couldn't fully block the links because of the number of bullets I shot at him".

The five of them walk through the halls of the building as fast as they could and still try to not run into demons on their way out. Without their weapons they didn't stand a chance. Their best bet right now was to slip out, come back to U to get their governor treated and come back for the demon spawn.

Just as they round the corner towards the exit, they see two demons who stood guard. Hiding behind the wall, they try to come up with a plan to get rid of them.

"Fuck. How do we get out?" Renjun asks in a hushed voice.

Jeno checks his pockets and straps on his thighs and legs to check for the weapons he tucked into them. Once he realizes they're gone, he curses. Not a second later, he takes off one of his boots and fishes out a dagger from it. He looked at the other four and as if they knew what he meant, they nodded at him.

Jeno walks towards the exit with cautious steps. As he silently creeps up to the demons guarding the exit, he slashes their throat in one swift movement which made a gurgling sound before the demons evaporated that created an awful stench. Running back to his members, the five of them exited the building as fast they could. Getting inside an abandoned car, Yuta hot wires one and drives to Neo Zone as fast as he can while he avoids the demons that littered the streets.

Once they were on the road, demons began to chase after them until a whole horde of them were after them. Stepping on the gas, their car whizzes past the highway but the car could only go so fast against supernatural creatures. Just as one of them manages to latch onto the car bumpers, its hand is shot off which makes the demon shriek. 

As Chenle looks up to where the shot came from, his eyes connect with a smirking Mark on a shuttle as Jaemin waves from beside him.

"Go faster! We'll take care of them", Mark yells as both him and Jaemin jump from the shuttle.

Jeno could only gaze incredulously at Jaemin who winked at him before Yuta steps on the accelerator once more and took them down to Neo Zone. Once inside, they waste no time to call for the medical team to treat Taeyong's slashed up legs inside the control system where the rest of their members were.

Chenle hugs Jisung as soon as he sees him while Lucas and Renjun could only smile at each other. Yuta's attention is taken by a car driving at incredible speed through the roads that connect 127 and U.

"Who's that?" asks Yuta which startles everybody who hasn't yet heard his voice.

"Yuta hyung?" Haechan looks at him in surprise.

"Yeah yeah I can talk. I'll tell you guys later. Now answer my question", Yuta says.

"It's Jungwoo hyung. Winwin hyung used up his energy and fainted. They're on their way here", Yangyang says.

Yangyang's answer spiked Yuta's worry.

"Is he alright?"

"He's fine. He just needs to rest", Doyoung says.

"This is why I told him he needed to stay here. His stubborn ass never listens to me", the adviser grumbles as he looks at Taeyong who's being treated.

"Round your weapons up guys. We're going out in two", said Renjun from behind them.

"Right".

Chenle, Jeno and Yuta loads up their guns and straps their weapons on them.

"Be careful you guys", Lucas reminds the four of them as they load into a new car that will take them out of Neo Zone. Yuta drives once again with the three Dreamers on the back seat.

"You think we're gonna win hyung?", asks Chenle to Yuta.

"We have to".

Ten, Hendery and Jaehyun were on the way back to U once they received word that hordes of demons were scattered on the streets of U. The ride from Dream to U wasn't exceptionally long for it was cleared off of demons but as soon as they were on the boundary, that's when the real problem arised.

Indeed a big number of demons were there.

 _'Jisung? Can you see this?'_ Ten says through the link.

It took a moment before Jisung could respond.

 _'Yeah hyung I do. You can take them right?'_ Ten could almost hear the nervousness in the whisperer's voice.

 _'Do we have a choice Ji?'_ Hendery asks as his link overlaps with the seer and whisperer.

 _'Don't answer that. We'll figure it out'_ Jaehyun says.

_'Make it faster if you can. Johnny, Mark and Jaemin hyung could use some help'_

With that, the link is disconnected.

"We're gonna die", Hendery says.

"No we're not. Let's go".

"Oh god".

The three of them exit the car as Ten and Jaehyun begin to shoot at the demons from their distance. As the demons run up to them, Hendery slashes left and right as he slices them in half which makes them drop to the ground and evaporate.

The sounds that filled the air were of empty gunshells hitting the pavement, katana slicing through the air, gun reloading and shrill shrieks of demons as they die. Ten's gun clicks as he realizes he runs out of bullets and he looks at Jaehyun with an alarmed expression while the Ace looks at him with the same expression on his face. Nodding at each other, they take out their knives and opts for hand-to-hand combat. 

It takes a while before all is left on the road are the three Neos panting with carcasses of demons and a foul stench in the air.

"C'mon let's go", Hendery says as the three of them made their way to their car and into U slumped inside the car.

"After this fight I'm going to shower and hibernate. This is fucking disgusting and so exhausting", Ten remarks which makes Jaehyun and Hendery chuckle.

"I don't think I even have the energy to shower after this", Jaehyun says which makes Ten's nose scrunch.

Winwin stirs from the backseat of the car Jungwoo is driving. Noticing the Visionary's movement, Jungwoo looks back and sees Winwin slowly waking up.

"Hey sleeping beauty. You good?" 

Winwin only groans as he sits up.

"What happened?"

"You fainted. Must've used up your energy. Hope you're fine now", Jungwoo says.

"I'm fine. Feel like I can flip an entire continent", Winwin jokes which mades Jungwoo chuckle.

"Well preserve that energy. We still haven't won".

They ride silently through the roads of 127 into U before Jungwoo receives a link from Doyoung.

_'Jungwoo tell me you're near'_

_'ETA thirty minutes sir. Actually make that ten'_ he says as he looks at Winwin through the rear view mirror.

The Visionary looks at him questioningly before he smirks and pushes a button that rockets them through the roads of 127 and indeed in ten minutes, they are in U. Winwin grips the seatbelt as if he's holding on for fear life with a horrified expression on his face, his complexion pale. Jungwoo chuckles as he switches off the car's engine.

"Fuck you Kim Jungwoo", Winwin says though with a weak voice.

Jungwoo busts out laughing only for his laugh to cut short once he spots demons just a few meters away. Looking at where Winwin was, he whips his head once he realizes the Visionary is not inside the car anymore. Eyes wide, he looks around to look for Winwin only to get shook up once he feels the ground shake. Before he knows it, the earth is opening up once again, making the demons fall and back sixty feet under the ground.

"Up here".

Jungwoo looks up as per the voice says and he sees Winwin levitating in the air with an adorable smile on his face. The Ace shook his head in amusement.

"Told you I felt like I could flip over a whole continent", Winwin says as he lifts Jungwoo up from the ground with a chunk of the road carrying him.

The two of them whip through the air to the center of U to join their members and kill off the demons.

'Kun take down Changmin's building' came Doyoung's voice through the link.

The pilot wastes no time in telling his squad on what to do. Within a minute, missiles are whizzing through the air with their target locked on the building Changmin is staying. Xiaojun and Taeil watch in amazement as the building slowly collapses.

"You think that killed him?" Xiaojun nudges Taeil's arm.

"If it was that easy, we wouldn't need all of us here".

And indeed Taeil was right. For a few moments after the building collapsed, Changmin stood unscathed in the middle of the road, debris surrounding him.

"Can't he die already? He's annoying", Haechan whines as he watches Changmin smirk through the monitor.

"I'm so fucking sick of this bitch", Chenle mumbles and just as he said that, he looks at Changmin straight in the eyes with his own irises that has turned red.

Chenle pulls and tugs away every bit of life force he can grasp on from Changmin while the devil's spawn chuckles and tilts his head in wonder.

"Zhong Chenle. I feel like I underestimated you".

"Go to hell", Chenle says through gritted teeth.

"What is he doing? He's going to get killed", Jisung exclaims, a worried expression on his face.

Just as he says that, their monitor glitches and shuts off. The black screen reflects their worried and scared faces.

"What happened? Lucas do something!" Doyoung panics.

"Hyung my links aren't going through", Jisung says.

"Nothing's working. He cut us off", Yangyang says.

On the streets of Division U, Jeno and mercenaries battle with the enemy's minions. With only some of them left, they were surrounded. But nonetheless they were fighting harder. Johnny comes to their aid with a fresh batch of soldiers with him. Jeno and Johnny nod at each other as if extending their thanks. With the others busy fighting as well, Chenle was paid no attention.

The ground shook as the earth once again opened up to swallow the demons as Winwin sent them back to hell. Hendery and Jaemin fight back to back with their katana and double ended sword. Yuta, Renjun and Jungwoo shoot arrows at every demon that comes even a few feet from where Chenle was standing. Ten, Jaehyun and Mark shoot with their guns that had bullets laced with melted minerals that could kill the demons.

The air filled with gunshots, arrows whizzing and metal swinging as well as a foul stench as the demons who were killed started evaporating. 

"Chenle stop!" Jeno's voice rings through the street which catches the attention of everyone else. 

Shooting his last demon, Mark looks back only to be met with a horrifying sight.

Chenle had blood coming off his fingers and nose. It was like the night of his wailing.

Changmin weakly chuckles before he says in a groggy voice, "Come on banshee. Drain me".

"Chenle don't listen to him. You know what'll happen", Jaemin says in a broken down voice.

Renjun loads his gun and shoots at Changmin who groans once the bullet hits his chest. The young assassin gasps as he sees it damages the demon's spawn.

"Guys quick, shoot at him with the bullets. He's close to dying!" Renjun says.

"Go on banshee. I tried to take your best friend. I deserve to die", Changmin presses onto Chenle with his words which angers the Dreamer even more.

His trick to kill off Chenle using his own ability was working. The Dreamer was getting worked up and tugging at his life force a lot harder and in return, making himself weak.

"Chenle snap out of it! He's trying to kill you!" Renjun says as he shoots another round at Changmin with the others following.

"I don't care! He took Jisung! I'm killing him!"

Chenle gasps for breath as his lungs start to burn from the lack of oxygen. 

"By all means, do kill me banshee", Changmin chuckles darkly as he begins to crumble with his life force leaving him and the bullets that have pierced his body. 

"Fuck. We ran out of bullets Jun!" yells Mark.

Chenle falls to his knees, too weak to support himself. Winwin runs up to the Dreamer only for Chenle to push him away.

"Chenle listen to me. Jisung is going to be hurt if you get yourself killed because of him. Stop it Chenle! Snap out of it!" Winwin begs at him but the young Dreamer doesn't seem to listen and only narrows his eyes at the demon's spawn.

Chenle gasps for another breath and as if he's pulling a final string, he gave his last tug and just like that Changmin completely collapses off the ground and evaporates with a very foul stench in the air.

"Is it over?" Chenle asks weakly.

"It is Lele", Mark replies as he hovers over the weak boy.

Chenle's eyes roll back to his skull as he completely loses consciousness in Winwin's arms as the others crowd over him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if you follow me on twt, you prolly know why this took so long and for that, i apologize :(((


	10. Coming Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "even if I walked a long way through this snowy road, you’re facing me when I look back"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the last chapter. I hope you like it.

It took nearly two months before all damages were taken care of in Neo City. From all architecture, highways, vehicles and of course, the fatalities. The fight took a huge number of soldiers from the government. Not only that but also a father, a brother, a husband and a son to their families. The civilians that were in the safety of their resident bunkers were then notified when the outside world was safe enough for them. 

A press conference was held two days after the big fight to explain to the citizens of Neo City what had happened. As expected, they received backlash left and right but there were also the people who understood the circumstances. To make up for the inconvenience, all repairs that their homes will be needing was shouldered by the government. Safe to say, no one ever complained after that.

Doyoung gazes from the glass walls of his office to the roads of Division U. The past months had been hard on them but more to the others, he suspects. From the training, the misunderstandings, the injuries and of course the fight. He sighs a heavy sigh before his attention is taken by the line ringing on his desk.

Walking over, he presses a button which makes a hologram appear with Jaehyun’s face on it.

“Hey you”, Jaehyun says from the other line, his smiling holographic face bringing a small smile to Doyoung’s.

“I thought you were on your way? Why are you calling?” Doyoung asks which makes the younger chuckle with his deep voice that had always made the advisor weak on his knees.

“ _We_ are on our way. Johnny’s driving us with Jungwoo’s big ass shuttle. Say hi to Doyoungie guys”.

The video on the hologram gets a bit blurry for a quick second as it’s panned to Johnny who was behind the controls of the shuttle who could only wave for a quick moment, Taeil who was beside him riding shotgun, Jungwoo who had a big smile on his as he waved aggressively and Yuta who screamed a ‘hello’ that Doyoung could’ve sworn he almost felt his ear drums pop. Jaehyun’s face appears again on the hologram.

“See? We’re almost there. And I just wanted to see you”.

Doyoung couldn’t help but smile at that.

 _’Ew Jae’_.

Doyoung hears Yuta from the background which makes him chuckle and Jaehyun’s holographic face whips behind him and says, “Shut up! You’re way worse with Winwin!”

“Anyways, what are you up to?”

“Nothing really. Everything is set, just waiting for everybody to arrive”, Doyoung answers.

“Well, okay then. See you soon”, Jaehyun smiles through the hologram and waves to which Doyoung responds with a wave too.

“See you”.

The hologram disappears and Doyoung is left alone once again with the silence of his office and the almost inaudible sound of the air conditioning. The adviser took a seat on his leather chair, leaning back, closing his eyes.

The past two months made him so busy that he couldn’t remember almost everything that had happened but everytime he closes his eyes and hears the silence, it’s almost impossible for the events to not come flooding back in his mind like an old movie waiting to be played over and over again. 

This time isn’t an exception.

After Chenle fainted, they rode Johnny’s shuttle back to Neo Zone. Because it couldn’t fit all of them, Winwin had to carry them through his forcefield bubble. Once inside, the medical team took care of Chenle with Jisung right by his side the whole time. The banshee didn’t gain physical wounds but he had his energy spent to the core. He was wired to monitors and liquids for a week before he had regained consciousness. The whisperer never left his best friend all throughout with Kun and Hendery bringing him food alternately every time Jisung refused to leave or just forgot to do so.

Taeyong recovered almost immediately with the minor wounds he received from the demon spawn. All of them were worried but Taeil was more. The leader of the Aces had refused to let the governor do strenuous tasks no matter how determined Taeyong was. But being the love-stricken fool he was, Taeyong couldn’t really go against Taeil especially when the older had looked at him pointedly that made the governor feel like he was going to melt. Everyone else found it weird that Taeyong turned all mush with Taeil’s glare. It scared them but the governor found it endearing.

Yuta and Winwin were something else. The both of them were ominous regarding their relationship. They didn’t really give everyone a clear answer but what they didn’t expect was Yuta to be the more clingy one. Maybe it was because they could finally hear Yuta’s real voice being whiny and happy and not just some robotic function that sounded too metallic to distinguish the real emotion Yuta was portraying. Nonetheless, they got the explanation of how Yuta was able to get his voice back. It was because of Winwin. With Winwin’s power and a lot of medical assistance, they were able to heal Yuta. 

Jeno and Jaemin were back to how they were. Although they were arguing for a whole day after the fight but it was just that. It was as if nothing happened after they woke up the next morning. They were back to their “disgusting selves” as Renjun likes to put it. Mark and Haechan were more like the private couple but with Haechan constantly trying to kiss Mark in the open which the older almost always brushes off. Mark was easily jealous too. Especially everytime Haechan and Yangyang were bonding together. It tickled every jealous bone in Mark’s body that Haechan had told him off about his jealousy which only resulted in a pouting Mark Lee and an amused Yangyang. One time Yangyang intentionally sat by Haechan at dinner just to tick off Mark. That night didn’t quite turn out the way the Visionary had expected since it was filled with happy screams for Xiaojun had started a food fight.

Lucas and Renjun was something nobody really expected. Lucas was so cheerful and always smiling whereas Renjun was all about straight faces and shooting guns. The only time the others see Renjun let loose was when he was with the Dreamers so it was indeed interesting when they see the tech hack and the assassin in training talking animatedly by themselves and Renjun looking so relaxed. 

Johnny and Ten was _something_. It was clear that the two had something going on. They were extremely flirty and almost always throwing each other looks as if they were waiting to pounce at one another. They were definitely way worse than Jaemin and Jeno when together.

Doyoung and Jaehyun had something quite unique, if Doyoung said so himself. One second they’re shamelessly flirting and the next they’re glaring fiercely at each other. It didn’t help that they seemed to be composed of two hundred and fifty competitive bones in their body and that doesn’t even make sense because the human body only has about two hundred and six. Always making everything a competition even if it wasn’t necessary. Taeyong asks the adviser what happened that day at the empty office when he had called him and told him he could tell Jaehyun everything and fix whatever they had going on but Doyoung had always dodged the question.

So much had happened after the fight. But the one thing that was definitely memorable was their last night at Neo Zone.

The dinner was filled with laughter and some unnecessary tears. Haechan was being his dramatic self, acting as if they wouldn’t get to see each other again. Kun had slapped the trickster’s shoulder because Hendery was falling for it and getting teary-eyed. Xiaojun laughs at his friend for falling for Haechan acting with a shake of his head. They had to go back to their Divisions to sort everything out as they were all moving to Division U. Neo Zone would be their official home from now on.

Since it was built for all of them to begin with, it made sense. Vision, 127 and Dream would still be functioning as it was. The leaders would go there if some matter really needs their physical presence but their workplace will officially be at Neo City’s tower. It was a neat plan. They’d all be together and get to train with one another. 

“Hey Kim Dongyoung!”

Doyoung’s eyes flashes open at the mention of his real name. His sight is blurry for a second before he gets a hold of himself and rubs his eyes gently to get his line of sight to focus. Once he is able to see clearly, he sees Taeyong with a confused expression on his face, his arms crossed over his body.

“I’ve been calling your name through the intercom for five whole minutes without you responding. You’re never a heavy sleeper. Something wrong?”

Doyoung straightens his posture and stretches.

“Nothing sir. I apologize”.

Taeyong snorts at his response and walks over to the couch on the far left side of Doyoung’s office to take a seat.

“Sir my ass. Drop the formalities. We’re brothers before you’re my adviser. What’s wrong?”

Doyoung smiles a bit at Taeyong’s response before saying, “I’m fine yong. Maybe the past months have finally taken its toll on me”.

This sparks Taeyong’s worry and looks at his adviser with a concerned expression.

“Oh. I can give you a vacation if you want”.

Taeyong had said it so nonchalantly that it caught Doyoung off guard.

“What? You don’t want it?”

Doyoung finds it hard to form the words he wants to say to the governor so he stays quiet.

“I mean, you deserve it you know. You’re always working hard, running errands for me and whatnot. Now that I think about it, you’ve never asked for a break since I was appointed as governor”.

“You know why”, came Doyoung’s reply to which Taeyong looked at him and smiled sincerely.

“I know. That’s why I’m offering you a vacation. One month. You like it?”

Taeyong wiggles his eyebrows at Doyoung who looked at him in shock.

“That’s too much! Yong I can’t do that!”

“Oh please. I’m willing to give you a year-long vacation if it was up to me but because I know you, I’m giving you a month”.  
“Half a month”, Doyoung argues.

“One month”, Taeyong argued back.

“Three weeks”.

“One. Month. I’m not up for negotiations”, says Taeyong with a final tone to which the adviser could not argue anymore.

“What am I even gonna do? Where am I gonna go?” Doyoung exclaims exasperatedly.

“There’s about a hundred and ninety-five countries all over the world Doie. I’ll plan and book everything. You just need to show up at the airport with your things packed”, Taeyong nods to himself as if satisfied with what he said.

Doyoung was about to open his mouth to answer when a buzz from the communicator on his table sounds followed by a voice.

_”The Neos have arrived sir”._

“Looks like the people we’ve been waiting for are here. Better welcome them”, Taeyong claps excitedly and gets up from the couch, walking to the door. 

It’s when he realized that Doyoung is gawking at him from behind that he turns back and looks at his adviser confused.

“What are you still sitting there for? I’m not waiting for you. I wanna see my moon”.

Doyoung makes a disgusted face at him, to which Taeyong looks at him, offended.

“Can you get any more disgusting? My gods”

“Oh shut up. Jaehyun calls you his bunny. Don’t act as if I don’t know. Come on”.

That made Doyoung indeed shut up.

They heard them before they saw them. Before the elevator doors could open, Taeyong and Doyoung recognized Haechan and Hendery’s loud voices. How could they not? They were singing so loudly Doyoung was surprised the others didn’t mind. Given that Winwin was asleep by Yuta’s side, it was indeed a mystery that the assassin hadn’t yelled at them to shut up.

They must’ve not heard the sound of the elevator doors opening nor the sound of their footsteps against the cemented floor as they stepped into Neo Zone because they continued as they were.  
Kun, Ten, Johnny and Taeil seemed to be having some deep conversation on the far left side of the room. Jaehyun, Mark, and Xiaojun were sat by the wall who seemed to be having a heated racing match on their phones. Renjun, Lucas, Jaemin, Jeno, Chenle, Jisung and Yangyang were all sat in a distorted circle with both Hendery and Haechan in the middle, a lone banana on both their hands as a makeshift microphone as they sang so obnoxiously loud (but still in tune surprisingly) as the seven people surrounding them laughs at their show.

It’s when he really looks at them that a question pops up in his mind.

_’Is this really the people I want to work with and see everyday for possibly the rest of my life?’_

It’s answered almost immediately as soon as he sees the look on Taeyong’s face.

Taeyong held that look of amusement in his eyes as well as a look of pride. His lips pulled into a suppressed smile and Doyoung hadn’t seen that look on Taeyong’s face before. It was new to him. Almost foreign. But nonetheless, he felt the warmth spread in his chest just by the way Taeyong looked at them.

_’Yeah. This the people I want to work with and see everyday and most definitely, for the rest of my life’._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> afterword:
> 
> hello :] to be honest I didn't know I would be able to write a ten chapter fic haha this is my first time so I apologize if this is not that good. I'm sure there's a lot of better fics out there but I tried my best and wrote what satisfied me. If you've reached this part of the story, then thank you for sticking until the end and for patiently waiting for the updates haha. Well, I guess that's it for this one. I really did enjoy writing this so much. It started as a dream and now I've created a story out of it. If you do have questions or just anything to tell me, I have my cc and twt account linked on my bio. Feel free to drop by. I hope you are staying safe and is safe wherever you are.
> 
> -icydain ✨

**Author's Note:**

> hello! disclaimer: this story takes place in a world I totally made up. Meaning, everything that happens in the story is PURE fiction. The things the characters (NCT) does or says do not reflect them personally or their group. I'm a new writer. I dreamt of this story a few nights ago and couldn't forget it so I thought I would write it. This isn't my first time writing but this is my first here so I wish you could give me kind words. Thank you. I'm @neocoups on twt :)


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